UC-NRLF 


B    3 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


PRESENTED  BY 

PROF.  CHARLES  A.  KOFOID  AND 
MRS.  PRUDENCE  W.  KOFOID 


CONVERSATIONS 


NATURE    AND    ART 


"  Je  iretudie  pas  pcur  devenir  savant,  mais  pour  me  rendre 
meilleur."  I^ettre  de  St.  Auguslin  a  St  Jerome. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

LEA     &    BLANCHARD, 

SUCCESSORS  TO  CAREY  &  CO. 
1839. 


Philadelphia : 

T.  K.  &  P.  G.  COLLINS,  Printers, 
No.  1  Lo<l«e  Alley. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PRINTING  AND  LIBRARIES. 

PAGE' 

Introduction. — Aldini. —  Italics. — Octavos. — Ink. — Typogra- 
phical Academy. — Inscription  over  the  Library  of  Aldus. 
— Dolphin. —  Price  of  Books. —  Cosmography. —  Hide. — 
Countess  of  Anjou. — Bishop  of  Winchester. — Louis  XI. 
— Libraries  of  John  and  Charles  V. — Ignorance  of  the 
early  Ages. — Council  of  Narbonne. — Library  of  Ptolemy 
Philadelphus. — Destruction  of  Books. — Cromwell. — Con- 
stable  Bourbon. — Taking  of  Buda. — Alexandrian  Library. 
Discovery  of  MSS. — Calligraphes. — Sir  R.  Cotton. — Maio. 
Palimpsests. — Books  the  Tribute  of  the  Conquered. — The 
Pandects  of  Justinian. — Treaty  of  Tolcntino. — Haroun  Al 
Raschid. — Clepsydra. — Al  Mamoun. — Sir  William  Jones  13 

i 
CHAPTER  II. 

PAPYRUS  MANUSCRIPTS. 

Papyxi  of  Herculancum. — Their  Discovery. — Method  of  un- 
rolling them. — Only  written  upon  one  Side. — Titles,  where 
placed. — Present  State  of  the  1756  MSS.— Papyrus  Paper 


IV  COHTENTS. 

PACK 

— How  niude. — Papyrus  at  Syracuse. — Chevalier  Lando- 
lina. — Laws  set  to  Music. — Teutonic  Paraphrase  of  the 
Bible. —  Csedmon. —  Arundelian  Marbles. —  Wills  of  the 
Roman  Soldiers. — \Vood. — Bone  Memoranda. — Wax. — 
Household  Book  of  Philip  le  Bel.— Talipot  Tree.— Bark. 
Books. — Indian  Paper. — Linen  Cloth. —  Skins. — Gold. — 
MSS.— Gradual  of  St.  Gregory.— Parchment.— Purple 
Vellum. — Silk  Paper — Cotton — Linen. — Codex  Argenteus. 
— Block  Printing. — Marco  Polo  -  -  -  30 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE  FLOWER-GARDEN. 

Mimulus  moschatus. — Centaurea  moschata. — Muscaria  pin- 
natifida.— Musk  Rat.— Goat  Moth.— Acanthus.— Cartha- 
rnus  tinctorius. — Rouge. — Crocus  sativus. — Carlina  acau- 
lis. — Onopordum  acanthium. — Azalea  pontica. — Geogra- 
phical Distribution  of  Bees. — Honey  of  Madagascar  and 
of  Narbonne.— Body  of  Alexander  the  Great. —Grafts. — 
Apples  and  Fish  in  Wax. — Leaf-culling  and  Mason  Bee. 
— Huber. — Insecls  on  Composite. — Dahlia. — Arbutus. — 
Camellia. — Calmuc  Tea. — Steppes  of  Asia  -  -  48 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  HOT-HOUSE. 

Bauhinia. — Ipomoea  coccinea  and  quamolit. — Hibiscus  rosa- 
sinensis. — Hibiscus  esculentus. — Malvacete. — Collon. — II- 
liciuin  floridarium  and  anisatum.— Anisette.— Maraschino. 
— Merises.—  Mayduke  —  Bigarreau.—  Kin-chenwasser. — 
Walnuts. — Vanilla.— Violet  Sherbet.— Bertola's  Lines  to 
the  Violet. — Rose  Apple.— Indian  Rubber.— Banyan  Tree. 
— Milton,  Southey  and  Moore's  Lines.— Dragon  Tree  of 


CONTENTS.  V 

FAGE 

Orotava.— Baobab.— Cocoa  Nut.— Monkeys  trained  to  fetch 
the  Fruit.— Seychelles  Island  Cocoa  Nut.— Albumen.— 
Orange  Trees  at  Sorrento  -  -  -  -  64 

CHAPTER  V. 


Fahrenheit  and  Reaumur. — Glass  Fire  Screen. — Ice  Win- 
dows.— Glass  of  Pompeii. — Venetian  Glass. — Glass  Win- 
dows  in  England. — Discovery  of  Glass. — Sand. — Barons' 
Cave  at  Reigate. — Barilla. — Kelp. — Fuci,  Uses  of. — Fucus 
natans. —  Wrack. —  Fucus  tenax. —  Laminariae.  —  Fucus 
crispus. — Dulse. — Laver. — Gelidium. — Chinese  Swallow. 
—Soy.— Red  Snow  -  85 

CHAPTER  VI. 

ITALIAN  MANUFACTURES. 

Sparterie. — Leghorn  Hats. — Mode  of  cultivating  and  pre- 
paring the  Straw. — Manufactory  of  Benenden. — Pietra 
Dura. —  Medici  Chapel. — Roman  Mosaic. — Roman  Pearls. 
— Argentine. — Levitical  Prohibition  with  regard  to  Fish. 
— Jews  in  Rome. — Ceremony  of  the  Renewal  of  their  Per- 
mission to  remain  in  Rome. — Final  Restoration  of  the 
Jews  -  -  99 

CHAPTER  VII. 

ON  SOUND. 

Sound. — Bell  in  Exhausted  Receiver. — Silence  in  Elevated 
Parts  of  the  Globe. — Pistol  on  Mont  Blanc. — Meteors. — 
Different  Velocity  of  Sound  in  different  Bodies. — Experi- 
ment of  the  cracked  Glass  and  Champagne. — Sounds  at 
1* 


VI  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Night. — Illustration  of  the  Mirage. — Ice  a  Conductor  of 
Sound.— Sea  Fights.— Speaking  Pipes. — Well  at  Caris- 
brook.— Cast-iron  Pipes  at  Paris.— New  Bell.— Echo  at 
Girgenti. — Sound  Conveyed  by  Water. — Along  Wood, 
Wire,  &c. — Ventriloquism. — Sensibility  of  the  Human 
Ear. — Ear  of  Dionysius. — Statue  of  Memnon. — Musical 
Rocks. — Scientific  Knowledge  of  the  Ancient  Priests  -  112 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

ST.  VINCENT  DB  PAUL. 

St.  Vincent  de  Paul. — Captivity  at  Tunis.— Tutor  to  Cardi- 
nal de  Retz. — Changes  Places  with  a  Galley  Slave. — 
Soeurs  de  la  Charite. — President  of  the  Council  of  Con- 
science.— Salpetriere. — Sends  supplies  to  Lorraine. — En- 
fans  Trouves. — His  Death. — Foundation  of  the  Orphan 
Asylum. — St.  Vincent  is  canonized  by  the  Pope  -  -  127 

CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  SUGAR  CANE. 

Hard  and  Soft  Water.— Sugar,  History  of. — Ideas  respecting 
it. — Introduced  into  the  Colonies. — Sugar  Refining. — Ali- 
mentary Qualities. — Body  Guard  of  the  King  of  Cochin 
China. — Hindoo  Tradition. — Species  of  Sugar  Cane. — 
Manna. — Early  Rising. — Anecdote  of  Frederick  II. — Eco- 
nomy of  Time. — Destruction  of  Books  by  a  Beetle  -  1£8 

CHAPTER  X. 

THE  GARDEN. 

Arundo  Donax,  Pragmilcs,  arenaria. — Law  against  Destroy- 
ing the  Bent. — Calamus. — Quill  Pens. — Reed  used  by  the 


CONTENTS.  Vll 

PAGE 

Turks. — Uses  of  the  Reed. — Influence  of  the  Choice  of 
Food  upon  the  Civilization  of  a  People.— Rose  of  Jericho. 
— Cruciferae. — Colours  in  Flowers. — Night-scented  Plants. 
— New  Zealand  Flax. — Iris  tenax. — Linnsea. — Belladonna 
and  Guernsey  Lilies.— Mrs.  Tighe's  Lines. — Rose  of  Pses- 
tum. — Otto  of  Roses.— Dog  Rose. — Fruit  eaten  by  Dogs, 
Foxes  and  Lizards. — Apple  of  Sodom.— Stock  Seed. — 
Blood  of  St.  Januarius  -  -  153 

CHAPTER  XL 

ON  LICHENS. 

Lichens.— Oxalic  Acid. — Tripe  de  Roche. — Iceland  Moss. — 
Reindeer  Moss.— Cudbear.— Perelle.— Orchill. — Litmus. — 
Cochineal. — Carmine,  &c.— Tyrian  Purple. — Murex  and 
Buccinum. — Account  of  the  Dye. — Fable  of  its  Discovery. 
— Royal  Colour. — Hyacinthine  Curls. — Martagon  Lily. — 
Mollusca.— Formation  of  Shells. — Sepia. — Indian  Ink. — 
Polypus  and  Kraken. — Eight-armed  Cuttle-fish. — Nautilus. 
— Chama. — Pinna  and  Pinnophylax  -  170 

CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  FOOD  OF  VARIOUS  NATIONS. 

Earth  eaten  by  the  Ottomacos,  People  of  New  Guinea,  New 
Caledonia,  Peru,  Java,  &c. — Steinbutter.— Girdle  of 
Famine. —  Ermine  Hunters. —  Gum  Arabic. — Tartar's 
Curd. — Fish-Bread  of  Babylonians  and  South  Americans. 
Food  of  Ants,  Bees,  Spiders,  Locusts  and  Boas. — Bugong 
Moth. — Goat  Moth.— Palm  Worms. — Chinese. — Shark's 
Fins. — Biche  de  Mer. — Snails.— Escargatories.— Sir  K. 
Digby. —  Israelites. —  Hybernation  of  the  Snail. —  Saw- 
Dust.— Shell  of  the  Snail  -  -  -  -  189 


Vlil  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  UPAS  TREE. 

Fabulous  Account  of  the  Upas.— Real  History  of  the  two 
Poisons  known  under  that  Name. — Bark  Dresses. — Spathes 
of  Palms. — Aristolochia. — Wourali  and  Curare  Poisons  of 
South  America. — Wolf  Poison  of  the  Cape. — Fish  Poison 
of  Ireland. — Parysatis  and  Stutira. — Mithridates. — Cor- 
nelia.— Marquise  de  Brinvilliers. — Iron  Mask. — Magnetic 
Mask.— Pelisse  -.  -  O  -  202 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

NATIONAL  EMBLEMS. 

Badges  of  the  Scottish  Clans. — Shamrock. — Irish  Harp. — 
lloyal  Supporters. — Heraldic  Visitations. — Distinction  be- 
tween Nobility  and  Gentility. — Commoner. — Horse,  Saxon, 
Kentish,  Hanoverian,  Carthagenian,  and  Agrigentine. — 
Horse  among  the  Ancient  Germans. — Raven. — Sagittarius. 
— Plantagenets.— Fleur  de  Lys. — Lily  and  Rose.— Papal 
Present — "  Under  the  Rose." — Rose  of  England. — Haw- 
thorn.— Salamander,  Natural  History  of  -  -  -  218 

CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  GIPSIES. 

Gipsies. — Hindoo  Origin. — Major  Kepple's  Account  of  them. 
Rogers's  Description. — Sortes  Virgilianae,  Homericas  and 
Sanctorum. — Roman  Number  Six. — Nine  of  Diamonds. — 

_  Year  88.— Countess  of  Albany.— Last  of  the  Stuarts. — 
Tomb  in  St.  Peter's.— The  Lady  Arabella.— Queen  Eliza- 
beth—Her Vanity  and  Love  of  Dress.— Anecdotes  of  her 


CONTENTS.  IX 

PAGE 

Court. — Learned  Ladies. — Anne  of  Cloves. — Anglo-S^xon 
Needlework. — Spinsters. — Hypatia. — Vittoriu  Colonna. — 
Helen  Cornaro  Piscopia. — Novella  d'Andrea. — Clotilda 
Tambroni. —  Laura  Bassi. —  Agnesi. —  English  Female 
Science  -  -  -  235 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  MORNING  WALK. 

Politeness.— Silk  Weed. — Peat  Moss.— Sun  Dew. — Mosses. 
—Tar,  Pitch,  &c.— Stone  Pine.— Ravenna.— Wood  of  the 
Vine. — Duck's  Nest  in  a  Tree. — Robin's  Cushion. — Gall 
Nut.— Mistletoe  of  the  Druids. — Charcoal  Burning.— De- 
rivation of  Several  Saxon  Words. — On  the  Study  of  the 
Saxon  Language. — Ferns,  eatable. — Capillaire  Plant. — 
Fern  Seed.— Fungi,  eatable.— Dry  Rot.— Glow  Worm.— 
Cleaning  Instrument.— Claws  of  Birds. — Procrastination  253 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

ON  SHELLS. 

Pearl  Oyster. — English  Pearls. — Age  of  Oyster. — Green 
Oyster. — Oysters  of  Lake  Fusaro. — Pilgrim's  Scallop. — 
Venus  mcrcenaria. — Pholas. — Solen. — Tellina. — Cardium. 
— Cowrie,  different  Species. — Colouring  Matter  of  Shells. 
— He!ix  Janthina. — Bulimus. — Periwinkle. — Strombus  gi- 
gas. — Cameo. — Nautilus. — Porcellaneous  and  Mother-o'- 
Pearl  Shells. —  Temple  of  Serapis.  —  Teredo. —  Sponge 
Fishery  -  -  273 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  WHALE  FISHERY. 

Portuguese  Man  of  War.— Palate  of  the  Whale.— Bill  of  the 


X  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Duck.— Spermaceti.— Ambergris.— Whale  Fishery.— Vil- 
lage of  Smcerenberg. — Decline  of  the  Whale  Fishery       -    286 

>     •  i^Ji!  •<•- 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

VEGETABLE  PHYSIOLOGY. 

Watcli  of  Flora. — Antipathies. — Smell  of  Flowers. — Flowers 
in  a  Room.— Leaves.— Necessity  of  Alternation  of  Light 
•nnd  Darkness  to  Plants.— Acidity  of  Fruits. — Starch.— 
Brazil  Nuts. — Genipa. — Cannon-Bail  Tree. — Calabash. — 
Inflammable  Plants. — Fraxinella  and  Lycopodium. — Doo- 
doe  Nuts.— Stormy  Petrel. — Guacharo. — Bog  Fir  and  Oak. 
Paper  from  Peat— Csesalpinia  pluviosa. — Coryanthes  ma- 
culata.— Shagreen. — Fragrance  of  Flowers  after  Rain  -  299 

CHAPTER  XX. 

SEPULCHRES  OF  THE  NATIONS  OF  ITALY. 

Tombs  at  Pcestum. — Burning  and  Burying  the  Dead. — Her- 
cules.— Roman  Tombs. — Structure  of  the  Sepulchres  of 
Campania. — Cinerary  Urns. — Contents  of  the  Sepulchres. 
— Lachrymatories. — Toilet  of  the  Roman  Ladies. — Italo- 
Greek  Vases. —  Manner  of  Painting  them. — Etruscan 

Vases Ancient  Etruria. — Cities  of  the  Etruscan  League. 

— Tombs   at   Tarquinii. — Clusium. — Etruscan   Scarabsei 

and  Money        ,,    *,^  -.?,•"*  -     318 

CONCLUSION   .-..-.-    332 


DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  ENGRAVINGS. 


ENGRAVING  I. 

Fig.  1 .  Machine  for  unrolling  the  papyrus  MSS. 

a  a  Screws  for  elevating  or  lowering  the  papyrus. 
6  Pasteboard  cradle,  in  which  the  papyrus  is 

laid. 

c  c  c  c  Ribands  which  support  the  papyrus,  and  re- 
tain it  firm  in  its  position. 

d  d  d  Threads  which  are  attached  to  the  goldbeater's 
skin,  and  which  support  the  unrolled  portion 
of  the  papyrus.  The  other  ends  of  c  and  d 
are  fastened  to  a  wooden  frame,  which  en- 
closes  the  whole  machine. 
e  e  c  Deficiencies  in  the  papyrus  filled  up  with  gold- 

beater's  skin. 

Fig.  2.  Papyrus,  showing  the  title  a  affixed  to  it. 
Fig.  3.  Papyri  found  tied  up  in  a  bundle. 
Fig.  4.  Papyrus  in  double  rolls,  (page  33.) 
Fig.  5.  Circular  box,  containing1  papyri  rolled  up  and  labelled. 

ENGRAVING  II. 
Fac-simile  of  an  unrolled  papyrus,  (page  34.) 


Engraving  I. 


Fiy.Z. 


ig.  3.  Efy-4:.  Fig- 5. 


If. 


CONVERSATIONS 


NATURE    AND    ART. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PRINTING  AND  LIBRARIES. 

INTRODUCTION. ALDINI.  —  ITALICS. OCTAVOS.  INK.  —  TYPO- 
GRAPHICAL   ACADEMY.  INSCRIPTION     OVER     THE     LIBRARY     OP 

ALDUS.  —    DOLPHIN.    PRICE    OF    BOOKS.   COSMOGRAPHY.  

HIDE. COUNTESS  OF  ANJOU. BISHOP  OF  WINCHESTER.  —  LOUIS 

XI.  —  LIBRARIES  OF  JOHN  AND  CHARLES  V.  —  IGNORANCE  OF  THE 
EARLY  AGES.  —  COUNCIL    OF  NARBONNE.  —  LIBRARY  OF    PTOLEMY 

PHILADELPHUS.  DESTRUCTION    OF     BOOKS.  —    CROMWELL.   

CONSTABLE   BOURBON.  TAKING    OF    BUDA.  ALEXANDRIAN    LI- 
BRARY.    DISCOVERY    OF    MSS.  —  CALLIGRAPHES.  SIR   ROBERT 

COTTON.  —  MAIO. PALIMPSESTS.  —  BOOKS  THE  TRIBUTE  OF  THE 

CONQUERED. THE    PANDECTS    OF   JUSTINIAN.  —  TREATY    OF  TO- 

LENTINO. — HAROUN   AL    RASCHID.  —  CLEPSYDRA. — AL    MAMOUN. 
—  SIR  WILLIAM  JONES. 


"  Yet  still  the  arts  now  dawning  gleam'd 

With  hope  of  brightest  day: 
Printing  the  key  to  science  seem'd, 

A  new  and  ready  way." 


FREDERICK  and  Henrietta  Wilmot  were  the  children  of  an 

officer  in  the  army,  whose  wife  had  been  ordered  to  pass  a 

year  at  Madeira,  as  the  only  means  of  restoring  her  declining 

health.     Being  unwilling  to  interrupt  the  education  of  their 

2 


14  INTRODUCTION. 

children,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wilmot  determined  upon  leaving  them 
at  their  respective  schools;  having  confided  the  care  of  them, 
during  the  holidays,  to  Mrs.  Fortescue,  the  widowed  sister  of 
Mr.  Wilmot 

Idle,  frivolous,  and  gay,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wilmot  had  be- 
stowed little  personal  attention  upon  their  children,  but  had 
considered  that,  in  placing  them  at  fashionable  schools  of 
high  reputation,  they  had  amply  fulfilled  their  duties  as 
parents,  and  had  released  themselves  from  all  further  neces- 
sity of  watching  the  growth  of  their  children's  minds. 

Frederick  was  now  twelve  years  old,  and,  like  most  boys 
of  his  age.  his  acquirements  were  limited  to  a  slight  know- 
ledge of  Latin  and  Greek. 

Henrietta  was  fifteen;  she  had  been  two  years  at  school, 
and,  being  naturally  quick  and  intelligent,  had  surpassed 
most  of  her  companions  in  superficial  attainments,  and  had 
acquired  a  degree  of  consequent  importance  among  her  school- 
fellows, which  served  but  to  increase  her  natural  vanity  and 
self-esteem. 

Far  different  were  her  cousins  Esther  and  Mary  Fortescue, 
the  first  of  the  same  age  as  Henrietta,  the  second  about  five 
years  younger. 

Bereft  of  her  husband  soon  after  the  birth  of  Mary,  Mrs. 
Fortescue  had  devoted  her  whole  attention  to  the  education  of 
her  daughters,  and,  fully  impressed  with  the  responsibility  of 
instilling  right  principles  into  the  minds  of  her  children,  she 
had  taken  the  whole  charge  of  their  education  upon  herself, 
and  placing  it  on  the  only  solid  foundation  —  religious  prin- 
ciple, she  had  endeavored,  under  Divine  assistance,  to  bring 
them  up  in  a  knowledge  of  the  truth,  "in  the  nurture  and  ad- 
monition of  the  Lord." 

Both  amply  repaid  the  fostering  care  of  their  mother,  and 
Mary  already  gave  promise  of  that  amiable  disposition,  that 
solid  good  sense,  that  uncompromising  rectitude,  which  were 
more  fully  shining  forth  in  her  elder  sister. 

The  midsummer  holidays  had  arrived,  when  their  cousins 
were  to  come  from  school.  Esther  was  absent  en  a  visit  to 
her  friend  Mrs.  Clifford,  but  was  to  return  upon  the  follow- 


PRIZE  BOOK.  15 

ing  day,  so  Mary  only  accompanied  her  mother  to  bring  Hen 
rietta  and  Frederick  home. 

Henrietta  returned  in  high  spirits,  having  gained  the  prize 
of  her  class,  and  impatiently  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  carrier 
with  her  trunk,  that  she  might  display  her  honors  to  her 
cousin.  The  trunk  was  brought  in  soon  after  the  party  had 
retired  to  rest,  but  was  speedily  unpacked,  and  its  treasure 
triumphantly  exhibited.  The  prize  book  was  a  copy  of 
Thomson's  Seasons, -splendidly  bound  in  red  morocco.  Mary 
examined  it  attentively,  and  having  expressed  her  admiration 
of  the  beauty  of  its  exterior,  proceeded  to  examine  the  inside 
of  the  volume. 

"Why,  what  is  this,  Henrietta?"  said  she;  "this  is  called 
the  Aldine*  edition  of  the  English  poets,  and  here  is  a  dol- 
phin twisted  round  an  anchor  in  the  title  page." 

"  I'm  sure  I  can't  tell  you,"  replied  Henrietta;  "  I  should 
never  have  thought  of  asking  such  a  question;  what  is  the  use 
of  it?  it  can't  be  of  much  consequence." 

"  That  I  don't  know,"  said  Mary,  but  mamma  has  always 
desired  me  to  ask  the  meaning  of  every  thing  which  I  don't 
understand." 

"  Oh,  that  would  be  very  troublesome,"  returned  Henrietta, 
"and,  after  all,  what  is  the  use  of  knowing?  I  have  had  the 
book  a  week,  and  have  never  thought  it  worth  while  to  in- 
quire." 

"Well,  but  had  you  not  better  ask  mamma?" 

"  No,  indeed,"  said  Henrietta,  "  for,  perhaps,  it  may  be 
something  which  I  ought  to  know,  and  then  she  will  find  out 
my  ignorance." 

Here  the  conversation  dropped,  but  Mary,  though  silent, 
was  not  satisfied,  and  the  next  morning  she  took  the  first  op- 
portunity of  asking  her  mamma  what  was  meant  by  the 
Aldine  edition. 

MRS.  FORTESCUE. 

I  shall  be  most  happy  to  tell  you;  but  surely,  as  the  book 
is  your  cousin's,  you  might  have  asked  her. 

*  Pickering  has  published  a  neat  edition  of  the  British  poets 
under  this  title. 


16  ALD1NK  EDITION. 

MARY. 

I  did,  mamma;  but  Henrietta  could  not  tell  me. 

MRS.  F. 

Then,  as  she  has  been  this  morning  in  the  library,  she 
doubtless  will  have  referred  to  the  Biographical  Dictionary, 
and  be  able  now  to  give  you  all  the  information  you  require. 

HENRIETTA. 

No,  indeed,  I  have  not,  aunt.  I  did  not  know  where  to 
find  it. 

MRS.  F. 

Then  why  did  you  not  ask  me1? 
Henrietta  was  silent. 

FREDERICK. 

Because,  aunt,  she  does  not  like  you  to  think  her  so  igno- 
rant as  not  to  know. 

MRS.  F. 

And,  therefore,  Henrietta,  you  are  so  proud  as  to  prefer 
going  without  information  rather  than  confess  your  ignorance. 
This  is,  indeed,  my  dear,  a  false  shame,  and  a  feeling  which 
will  prove  the  greatest  bar  to  your  improvement.  Believe 
me,  there  is  no  disgrace  in  confessing  your  ignorance,  but 
there  is  great  disgrace  in  remaining  in  it,  when  the  means  of 
knowledge  lie  in  your  power.  Recollect  the  answer  of  the 
ancient  philosopher,  who,  when  asked  how  he  had  acquired 
such  a  fund  of  knowledge,  replied,  "  By  inquiring  every 
thing  which  I  did  not  know,  and  leaving  nothing  unsearched 
until  I  had  found  it  out."  Follow  his  example,  and  you  will 
be  surprised  at  how  much  you  will  daily  learn.  Whenever 
you  meet  with  any  thing  in  the  course  of  your  reading  which 
you  do  not  comprehend,  you  should  not  proceed  with  your 
book  until  you  have  consulted  works  of  reference,  and  gained 
the  desired  information. 


• 


THE  ALDINI.  17 

HENRIETTA. 

But  how  very  tiresome  this  would  be,  aunt;  we  should 
never  get  through  our  books,  and  should  take  a  week  in  read- 
ing what  is  now  only  a  day's  lesson. 

MRS.  F. 

And,  pray,  of  what  consequence  would  that  be1?  What  is 
the  object  of  all  reading?  Surely  not  to  be  able  to  say  how 
many  books  we  have  read,  but  to  store  our  minds  with  useful 
and  solid  information;  and  assuredly  that  object  is  better  at- 
tained by  a  careful  perusal  of  one  book,  than  by  reading  a 
dozen  in  a  hurried  and  superficial  manner.  Recollect,  Hen- 
rietta, that  it  is  the  quantity  of  knowledge  you  acquire,  not 
the  quantity  of  books  which  you  read,  which  is  the  object 
you  should  always  have  in  view.  Read  to  learn,  not  to 
boast,  and  you  will  become  wiser  and  better  from  your 
knowledge:  but  I  will  say  no  more  upon  the  subject,  as  I 
trust  that  what  I  have  already  observed  may  prove  sufficient. 
Let  us  now  proceed  to  Mary's  original  question,  and  tell  her 
about  the  Jlldine  poets, 


Thank  you,  mamma. 

MRS.  F. 

The  edition  so  termed,  is  named  after  three  celebrated 
Italian  printers  called  the  Aldini,  father,  son,  and  grandson, 
all  distinguished  by  their  talents  and  industry,  and  to  whom 
we  are  indebted  for  great  improvements  in  the  art  of  printing. 
Aldus 

FREDERICK. 

What  a  strange  name! 

MRS.  F. 

It  was  a  corruption,  or,  rather,  a  diminutive  of  his  baptis- 
mal name,  Theobaldus.     But,  to  continue;  Aldus  Pius  Manu- 
tius  was  born  in  1447,  and  set  up  a  printing  press  at  Venice, 
where,  in  1494,  he  published  his  first  work.     The  beauty  of 
2* 


18  ITALICS.  —  OCTAVOS. 

his  types  was  unrivalled,  and  he  was  the  inventor  of  what 
\vas  then  called  the  Aldine,  and  has  since  been  denominated 
the  Roman  or  Cursive  type. 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  that  the  same  as  Italics"? 

MRS.  F. 

Precisely;  and  it  is  said  that  he  founded  his  types  in  imi- 
tation of  the  handwriting  of  Petrarch,  who  was  himself  a 
most  diligent  collector  and  transcriber  of  ancient  manuscripts. 
Aldus  first  employed  them  in  his  edition  of  Virgil  in  1501, 
the  first  book  which  ever  appeared  in  the  octavo  size. 

HENRIETTA. 

This  alone  must  have  been  a  great  improvement. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  before  that  period,  the  unwieldy  size  of  books  pre- 
vented them  from  being  portable,  so  that  this  invention  of 
Aldus  was  of  the  greatest  utility.  The  neatness  of  the  text, 
the  beauty  of  the  ink,  and  of  the  paper  of  the  first  printers 
have  never  been  surpassed. 

MARY. 
Where  was  their  ink  made,  mamma? 

MRS.  F. 

The  Italian  printers  had  theirs  chiefly  from  Paris.  This 
ink  has  a  lustre  and  brilliancy  which  our  modern  ink  does  not 
possess;  but  whether  this  proceeds  from  a  difference  in  the 
preparation,  or  from  the  influence  of  age,  time  alone  can  de- 
cide.* But  it  was  the  publication  of  the  works  of  Aristotle 
which  placed  Manutius  in  the  first  rank  among  printers;  and 
this  alone,  independent  of  all  his  other  labors,  would  have 
entitled  him  to  the  gratitude  of  posterity;  for  it  is  impossible 
to  form  an  adequate  idea  of  the  patience  and  sagacity  it  re- 
quired to  decipher  the  MSS.  which  served  as  bases  to  his 
editions,  to  supply  omissions,  and  reconcile  the  various  lead  - 

*  Valery,  Voyages  en  Italic,  t.  iv.  p.  411. 


TYPOGRAPHICAL  ACADEMY.  19 

ings  which  presented  themselves.  Leo  X  was  not  insensible 
to  his  merit,  but  repaid  it  by  publishing  a  bull  in  1513,*  by 
which  he  granted  to  Aldus,  for  fifteen  years,  the  sole  privi- 
lege of  publishing  whatever  Greek  and  Latin  books  he  had 
printed,  or  might  afterwards  print,  as  well  as  the  exclusive 
use  of  the  Italic  type.  Aldus  was  the  intimate  friend  of  the 
illustrious  Picus  of  Mirandola,f  and  established  a  Typo- 
graphical Academy,  which  reckoned  among  its  members 
Erasmus,  Cardinal  Bembo,  and  many  of  the  most  distin- 
guished persons  of  the  age.  This  learned  body  used  to 
assemble  at  the  house  of  Manutius  to  examine  the  manu- 
scripts, and  to  correct  and  decipher  them.  The  inscription 
over  the  door  of  his  room  shows  the  zeal  with  which  Aldus 
pursued  his  avocations.  It  was  in  Latin,  but  the  translation 
is  this:  "Whoever  thou  art,  Aldus  begs  and  conjures  thee, 
that  if  thou  hast  occasion  to  speak  to  him  thou  dost  finish  in 
a  few  words,  and  go  away  quickly;  unless  thou  comest,  like 
Hercules,  to  lend  thy  shoulder  to  the  wearied  Atlas.  Then 
thou,  and  all  that  come  here,  will  always  find  something  to 
da." 

FREDERICK. 

What  a  curious  inscription"? 

MRS.  F. 

Whimsical,  like  the  style  of  the  age;  but  it  shows  the 
ardor  with  which  he  prosecuted  those  researches  to  which 
he  devoted  his  time  and  his  fortune.  In  short,  when  we  re- 
flect that  the  exertions  of  Manutius  rescued  so  many  writings 
from  their  insecure  existence  in  manuscript,  and  thereby  ex- 
tended their  circulation — that  he  consequently  changed  the 
direction  of  studies  from  the  narrow  bounds  of  monkish 
legends  to  the  noblest  works  of  Greece  and  Rome  —  we  must 

*  Roscoe's  Leo  X,  c.  xi. 

t  He  died  in  his  32d  year,  two  months  after  his  friend  and  com- 
panion Poliziano,  who  expired  the  day  on  which  Charles  VIII  en- 
tered Florence,  1494.  Both  were  buried  in  the  church  of  St.  Mark, 
in  that  city. 


20  DECLINE  OF  THE  ALDINE  PRESS. 

consider  him  as  having  eminently  contributed  to  the  progress 
of  civilisation  and  to  the  revival  of  learning,  and  must  ever 
feel  the  deepest  veneration  for  a  man  whose  life  was  one  con- 
tinued series  of  labors  which  will  extend  their  useful  in- 
fluence to  the  latest  posterity. 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  aunt,  did  you  not  say  that  there  were  three  Aldini  ? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  Aldus  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Paul,  who,  as  a 
printer  and  editor,  equalled  his  father.  Devoted  to  the  study 
of  Cicero,  he  published  several  editions  of  his  works.*  He 
was  chosen  professor  of  eloquence  to  the  Venetian  Academy, 
and  remained  in  that  city  until  1561,  when  he  removed  to 
Rome,  and  set  up  his  printing-press  in  the  capitol.  He  died 
in  1574,  leaving  a  son,  generally  called  Aldus  the  younger, 
who  had  distinguished  himself  by  his  precocious  talents,  and 
was  appointed  by  Clement  VIII,  to  direct  the  presses  of  the 
Vatican.  Aldus  the  younger  died  in  1597,  leaving  his  affairs 
in  the  greatest  disorder.  The  valuable  library  collected  by 
his  father  and  grandfather  (and  which  he  had  wished  to  leave 
to  the  republic  of  Venice)  was  dispersed  among  his  creditors, 
and  the  press  of  Aldus  ceased  to  exist,  after  having  flourished 
for  nearly  a  century.  | 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt,  for  this  very  interesting  account,  which 
my  foolish  false  shame  nearly  made  me  lose  hearing.  But 
now  you  have  not  told  us  the  meaning  of  the  dolphin  t\visted 
round  an  anchor,  which  I  see  in  the  title-page  of  my  book. 

MRS.  F. 
That  was  the  distinguishing  mark  of  the  Aldine  press;  for, 

*  The  number  of  copies  taken  off  at  one  edition  in  those  times 
was  very  small  :  so  that  certain  works  of  Cicero,  published  by  Paul 
Manutius,  were  reprinted  almost  annually. 

t  See  Roscoe's  Leo  X,  and  Biographe  UniVerselle,  for  detailed 
lives  of  the  Aldini. 


COSMOGRAPHY.  21 

at  that  time,  all  the  printers  used  peculiar  signs,  by  which 
the  works  of  their  press  might  immediately  be  recognised. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  very  much  we  read  that  books  were  prized  formerly. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  so  long  as  they  remained  in  manuscript  their  cost 
was  very  great.  In  690,  Aldfred,  King  of  Northumberland, 
gave  an  estate  of  eight  hides  of  land  for  a  work  upon  cosmo- 
graphy. 

MARY. 

Oh,  pray  stop,  mamma,  and  tell  me  the  meaning  of  that 
word. 

FREDERICK. 

Its  derivation,  Mary,  is  from  two  Greek  words,  kosmos,  the 
world,  and  grapho,  to  write. 

MRS.   F. 

Therefore,  cosmography  is  a  treatise  on  the  general  system 
of  the  universe — its  construction,  its  form,  and  the  relation  of 
each  part  to  the  whole.  Cosmography  divides  itself  into  two 
branches ;  astronomy,  which  treats  of  the  heavenly  bodies, 
and  geography,  which  has  for  its  object  the  description  of 
the  earth.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt,  for  the  explanation.  I  never  rightly  un- 
derstood the  difference. 

MARY. 
But  what  is  abide"? 

HENRIETTA. 

A  hundred  acres. 

i 
*  Guizot,  Dictionnaire  des  Synonymes. 


22  COUNTESS  OF  ANJOU. 

MRS.  F. 

A  Countess  of  Anjou,  in  the  15th  century,  paid  for  one 
book  200  sheep,  5  quarters  of  wheat,  and  the  same  quantity 
of  rye  and  millet;*  and  in  early  times  the  loan  of  a  book  was 
considered  to  be  an  affair  of  such  importance,  that,  in  1299, 
the  Bishop  of  Winchester,  on  borrowing  a  Bible  from  a  con- 
vent in  that  city,  was  obliged  to  give  a  bond  for  its  restora- 
tion, drawn  up  in  the  most  solemn  mariner;  and  Louis  XI 
(in  1471)  xvas  compelled  to  deposit  a  large  quantity  of  plate, 
and  to  get  some  of  his  nobles  to  join  with  him  in  a  bond, 
under  a  high  penalty  to  restore  it,  before  he  could  procure 
the  loan  of  a  book  which  he  borrowed  from  the  faculty  of 
medicine  at  Paris. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  very  few  books  people  had  then.  I  read  the  other 
day,  in  a  description  of  Paris,  that  King  John  (of  France) 
had  only  eight  or  ten  volumes  in  the  royal  library,  and  that 
Charles  V  increased  their  number  to  110. 

MARY. 

And  I  have  read,  too,  that,  in  855,  there  was  not  a  copy  of 
Cicero  in  France. 

MRS.  F. 

Very  likely;  but  then  we  must  also  take  into  consideration 
the  ignorance  of  those  times,  when  learning  was  almost 
entirely  confined  to  the  clergy,  and,  even  among  them,  so 
much  ignorance  existed,  that  by  an  ordinance  of  the  Council 
of  Narbonne,  held  in  589,  they  were  obliged  to  forbid  that 
any  one  should  be  received  into  the  ecclesiastical  state  who 

*  The  sums  given  in  modern  times  have  been  proportionably 
great.  In  1812,  the  Marqui$  of  Blandford  gave  2260/.  sterling  for 
an  edition  of  Boccaccio,  (Venice,  1471,)  which  has  since  passed  into 
the  library  of  Lord  Spencer.  So  Pope  says, 

"  In  books,  not  authors,  curious  is  my  lord; 
To  all  their  dated  backs  he  turns  you  round: 
These  Aldus  printed,"  &c. 


IGNORANCE  OF  THE   EARLY  AGES.  23 

could  not  at  least  read,-  and,  in  the  time  of  Alfred,  there  were 
few  priests,  south  of  the  H umber,  who  could  translate  the 
Latin  service;*  indeed,  had  not  divine  service  been  continued 
to  be  performed  in  Latin,  the  language  would  probably  have 
been  forgotten,  and  the  works  of  the  ancients  have  been  irre- 
coverably lost  to  posterity.f  Kings  and  other  great  men  at 
that  time  could  only  make  their  mark;  Charlemagne  was 
unable  to  sign  his  own  name,  and  never  made  any  progress 
in  literature  until  the  age  of  forty-five. 

FREDERICK. 

But  how  was  it,  aunt,  that  books  had  become  so  scarce, 
for  the  ancients  had  very  large  libraries'?  In  the  Philadel- 
phian,  at  Alexandria,  for  instance,  there  were  said  to  be  700,- 
000  volumes. 

MRS.  F. 

Because,  in  the  various  wars  which  have  devastated  the 
earth,  conquerors  have  not  been  content  with  destroying  the 
vanquished,  but  have  extended  their  vengeance  even  to  their 
books.  The  Romans,  Jews,  and  Christians,  mutually  burnt 
the  books  of  each  other,  the  Spaniards  those  of  the  Moors, 
the  Puritans  those  of  the  papists,  and  even  Cromwell,  in  his 
fanatic  zeal,  set  fire  to  the  library  at  Oxford,  one  of  the  most 
curious  in  Europe.  The  Florentines  burnt  the  books  of  the 
Medici;  and  the  sack  of  Rome,  by  the  Constable  Bourbon, 
was  fatal  to  the  treasures  of  the  Vatican.  The  same  year^: 
the  Turks  destroyed  the  beautiful  library  at  Buda  of  Mathias 
Corvinus,  who  had  collected  50,000  volumes.  The  library 
of  the  Electors  was  part  of  the  spoils  of  the  Palatinate,  but 
fortunately,  instead  of  being  burnt,  it  was  transferred  by 
Maximilian  of  Bavaria  to  the  Vatican. 

HENRIETTA. 

And  then  there  is  the  burning  of  the  Alexandrian  library, 
by  the  Caliph  Omar.§ 

*  "  In  Wessex,  Alfred  says,  there  was  not  one." 
t  Schmidt,  Histoire  des  Allemands,  vol.  i.  p.  329. 
J  A.  D.  1527.  §  A.  D.  640. 


24  DESTRUCTION    OF   BOOKS. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  as  the  story  is  told,  4000  baths  of  the  city  were 
heated  for  six  months  with  this  precious  fuel ;  but  the  fact 
has  always  remained  a  subject  of  much  doubt. 

FREDERICK. 

Why? 

MRS.   F. 

On  account  of  the  silence  of  two  early  Christian  authors, 
one  of  whom*  describes  the  taking  of  Alexandria,  and  could 
hardly  have  suffered  so  important  a  circumstance  to  pass 
unnoticed. f  The  first  mention  of  the  fact  is  by  Abulphara- 
gius,  an  historian  who  wrote  600  years  after  the  event ;  but, 
on  the  whole,  I  should  say  that  modern  historians  are  gene- 
rally disposed  to  admit  the  act,  which  seems,  however,  so 
contrary  to  the  general  character  of  either  Omar  or  Amrou, 
that  we  must  look  upon  it  as  an  action  demanded  by  the  bar- 
barous superstition  of  their  age,  rather  than  to  any  wish  or 
impulse  of  their  own. 

HENRIETTA. 

When  was  it  that  the  learned  began  to  occupy  themselves 
in  the  recovery  of  books'? 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  15th  century,  and  monasteries  were  then  diligently 
searched  for  manuscripts.  The  Pandects  of  Justinian  were 
discovered  at  Amain,  Tacitus  in  a  convent  at  Westphalia, 
and  Petrarch  was  the  fortunate  discoverer  of  a  portion  of 
Cicero's  Letters  in  the  library  of  the  chapter  of  Verona. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  should  like  to  see  the  MS.  discovered  by  Petrarch. 

MRS.  F. 
It  is  in  the  Laurentian  library  at  Florence,  as  well  as  the 

*  Eutychius. 

t  Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall,  chap.  li. 


DISCOVERY  OF  MSS.  25 

poet's  copy  of  this  and  several  others  of  Cicero's  works,*  for 
Petrarch  transcribed  many  manuscripts,  and  we  have  before 
alluded  to  the  beauty  of  his  handwriting;  but  among  the 
emperors,  Theodosius  the  younger  was  so  celebrated  for  the 
elegance  with  which  he  transcribed  religious  works  as  to 
acquire  the  epithet  of  Calligraphes,  or  fair  writer,  f  Many 
manuscripts  have  been  recovered  in  the  most  singular  man- 
ner. Part  of  Livy,  for  instance,  was  found  by  a  man  of 
letters  on  his  battledore,  and  Sir  Robert  Cotton  discovered 
his  tailor  on  the  point  of  cutting  up  for  measures  the  original 
Magna  Charta ;  but  we  have  reason  to  believe  that  many 
valuable  works  of  the  ancients  have  been  lost  from  the  monks 
having  erased  the  writings,  in  order  to  inscribe  their  own 
legends  on  the  parchment,  the  value  of  the  material  being  at 
that  time  so  great  as  to  compensate  them  for  the  labor.  The 
celebrated  Maio  has  discovered,  by  the  assistance  of  che- 
mistry, a  liquid  with  which  he  washes  the  parchment,  which 
restores  the  original  characters,  and  thus  many  valuable  frag- 
ments of  the  ancient  classical  writers  have  been  restored, 
interlined  with  monkish  legends. 

HENRIETTA. 

Did  you  ever  see  any,  aunt? 


Yes,  I  saw  one  in  the  Ambrosian  library  at  Milan,  where 
there  are  several.  The  Orations  of  Cicero,  over  which  had 
been  transcribed  the  poems  of  a  priest  of  the  6th  century; 
other  portions  of  the  same  author,  under  a  Latin  translation 
of  the  acts  of  the  Council  of  Chalcedon;  the  letters  of  Marcus 
Aurelius,  under  another  history  of  the  same  council ;  and  the 
Institutes  of  Gaius,^:  which  were  not  only  covered  with  a 
treatise  of  St.  Jerome,  but  had  also  a  third  writing  between 
them,  which  likewise  consisted  of  epistles  and  meditations 

*  Valery,  Voyages  en  Italie,  iii.  41. 
f  Gibbon,  chap,  xxxii. 

\  A  celebrated  Roman  writer  upon  Jurisprudence. 
3 


26  RESTORATION  OF  MSS. 

of  the  same  saint,  so  that  the  writing  had  been  erased  twice 
from  the  parchment.* 

FREDERICK. 

Are  these  the  writings  which  I  have  heard  called  pa- 
limpsests? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  the  term  is  derived  from  the  Greek  palin,  again,  and 
psao,  scrape. 

FREDERICK. 

Aunt,  since  you  were  telling  us  of  the  value  of  manu- 
scripts, I  have  just  recollected  that  Ptolemy  Physcon,  at  the 
time  of  the  famine,  refused  to  furnish  the  Athenians  with 
corn,  unless  they  gave  him  the  original  copies  of  Sophocles, 
./Eschylus,  and  Euripides. 

MRS.  F. 

Well  remembered,  Frederick.  Books  have  often  been  the 
price  of  conquest,  particularly  in  Italy.  A  copy  of  Cresar's 
Commentaries  was  the  spoils  of  a  victory  of  the  Genoese 
fleet  over  the  king  of  Arragon,  in  1435.  The  Pandects  of 
Justinian  were  the  price  of  the  surrender  of  Pisa;  and,  even 
in  modern  times,  the  cession  of  500  MSS.  of  the  Vatican  was 
one  of  the  articles  of  the  treaty  at  Tolentino. 

FREDERICK. 

I  beg  your  pardon  for  interrupting  you,  aunt,  but  where 
are  the  Pandects  now? 

MRS.  F. 

At  Florence :  their  history  is  singular.  Discovered  at 
Amalfi,  they  were  taken  at  the  siege  of  that  city  in  1 135,  by 
the  Pisans.  Many  think  it  was  a  copy  sent  into  Italy  by 
Justinian  himself:  be  that  as  it  may,  it  is  the  oldest  in  exist- 
ence. Gino  Capponi  having  forced  Pisa  to  surrender  by 

*  Valery,  Voyages  en  Italie,  t.  i.  p.  302.  This  last  palimpsest  is 
at  Verona. 


THE  PANDECTS  OF  JUSTINIAN.  27 

famine,  carried  away  the  Pandects  as  the  terms  of  capitula- 
tion, and  took  them  to  Florence,*  when  they  were  placed  in 
the  Palazzo  vecchio,  and  only  shown,  in  the  time  of  the  re- 
public, by  special  permission  of  the  seigniory,  and  by  torch- 
light. They  were  afterwards  removed  to  the  Laurentian 
library,  and  the  key  kept  by  one  of  the  officers  of  the  court. 
They  are  still  there ;  one  volume  is  locked  up,  the  other  is 
placed  open  in  a  glass  case.t  But  I  have  one  more  instance 
which  occurs  to  me,  of  the  desire  of  acquiring  books,  in  the 
celebrated  Al  Mamoun,  son  of  Haroun  al  Raschid,  who,  when 
he  defeated  the  Greek  emperor,  Michael  the  Stammerer,  re- 
quired that  he  should  give  him  a  certain  number  of  Greek 
books  as  a  tribute. 

FREDERICK. 

Was  it  not  Haroun  al  Raschid  who  sent  a  clock  to  Charle- 
magne? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  the  first  that  had  ever  been  seen  in  Europe;  but  it  was 
not  a  clock  such  as  we  use  now,  but  a  water  clock,  or  clepsy 
dra,  so  called  from  the  Greek,  klepto  to  steal,  and  udor  water 
the  time  being  measured  by  the  escape  or  stealing  of  water 
through   a  hole  in  the  bottom  of  the  vessel.      Haroun  a 
Raschid   himself  was  a  great  patron  of  literature,  and  he 
never  went  a  journey  without  being  accompanied  by  at  least 
a  hundred  men  of  learning.     But  it  is  his  son,  Al  Mamoun,^ 
who  may  be  regarded  as  the  father  of  science  among  the 
Arabians.     He  invited  the  learned  of  all  countries  to  his 
court,  he  exhausted  his  treasures  in  collecting  manuscripts, 
in  patronising  astronomy,  and  in  promoting  the  interests  of 
science,  and  the  reign  of  Al  Mamoun  may  be  looked  upon  as 
giving  the  same  impulse  to  the  eastern  nations,  as  the  age 
Augustus,  or  Leo,  exerted  over  the  western.     In  the  midst 
of  ignorance  and  superstition  Al  Mamoun  shines  pre-eminent, 

*  A.  D.  1406. 

t  Valery,  Voyages  en  Italic,  t.  iii.  p.  38. 

J  Succeeded  his  brother,  A.  D   813. 


28  CLEPSYDRA. AL   MAMOUN. 

and  sheds  a  ray  of  lustre  over  the  dark  ages  in  which  he 
lived;*  but  we  must  leave  off  talking,  for  the  morning  is 
nearly  gone,  and  we  have  not  begun  our  studies. 

HENRIETTA. 

Oh,  aunt,  I  am  so  sorry!  for  I  had  a  great  many  questions 
to  ask  you.  I  wished  you  to  tell  me  what  made  parchment 
so  scarce  as  to  induce  the  monks  to  use  the  old  manuscript. 

MRS.  F. 

It  had  never  been  plentiful;  for  the  elaborate  preparation  it 
required  had  always  made  it  a  costly  article,  and  it  was  only 
manufactured  at  one  place. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  did  they  not  make  paper  of  papyrus'? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  papyrus  paper  was  known,  but  it  had  become  scarce 
since  the  conquest  of  Egypt  by  the  Saracens; — but  I  shall  be 
happy  to  continue  the  subject  another  day;  and  now  we  must 
leave  off,  for  we  have  done  nothing  this  morning. 

HENRIETTA. 

Do  you  call  this  nothing,  aunt?  I  am  sure  that  I  have 
learned  more  than  in  a  week's  common  reading. 

MRS.  F. 

More  general  information,  no  doubt,  if  you  read  in  the 
superficial  manner  which  you  describe ;  but,  improving  as 
these  conversations  may  be,  they  can  never  stand  in  the 
place  of  regular  study.  Reading  and  conversation  should  be 
combined.  "  Read  and  Learn,"  said  his  mother  to  Sir  Wil- 
liam Jones;  and  though  I  am  far  from  giving  you  that  answer 
to  your  inquiries  after  information,  yet,  believe  me,  that  all 
the  desultory  conversations  we  may  hold,  can  never  compen- 
sate for  that  regular,  systematic  course  of  study,  which  alone 

*  Sismondi,  Litterature  du  Midi  de  PEurope,  t.  i.  p.  45. 


BENEFITS  DERIVED  FROM  STUDY.  29 

can  constitute  a  good  education; — but  I  hear  a  ring  at  the 
bell— that  must  be  Esther. 

All  ran  out  to  meet  her,  for  Esther  was  welcomed  with 
pleasure  wherever  she  went.  Her  kindness  and  considera- 
tion had  made  her  as  great  a  favorite  among  the  younger 
branches  of  the  family,  as  her  sensible,  well-regulated  mind 
had  endeared  her  to  her  mother.  She  had  passed  a  most 
agreeable  visit  with  her  friend,  Mrs.  Clifford,  who  lived  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Guildford,  and  had  obtained  permission 
to  show  her  beautiful  garden  to  her  sisters  and  cousins;  for, 
disinterested  and  generous  by  nature,  Esther  enjoyed  nothing 
alone,  and  felt  no  indulgence  a  source  of  gratification  to  her- 
self, unless  it  could  be  shared  by  those  she  loved. 


30 


CHAPTER  II. 

PAPYRUS  MANUSCRIPTS. 

PAPYRI    OF    HERCULANEUM  —  THEIR    DISCOVERY — METHOD     OP   CN- 
ROLLING    THEM  —  ONLY    WRITTEN    UPON     ONE     SIDE  —  TITLES, 

WHERE  PLACED.  PRESENT  STATE  OF    THE  1756  MSS. — PAPYRUS 

PAPER  HOW    MADE.   —  PAPYRUS    AT    SYRACUSE.  —  CHEVALIER 

LANDOLINA.  —  LAWS  SET  TO  MUSIC.  —  TEUTONIC  PARAPHRASE  OP 
THE  BIBLE.  — •  CJEDMON.  —  ARUNDELIAN  MARBLES.  —  WILLS  OF 
THE  ROMAN  SOLDIERS.  WOOD.  —  BONE  MEMORANDA.  — WAX. 

—  HOUSEHOLD  BOOK  OF  PHILIP  LE  BEL.  —  TALIPOT  TREE.  —  BARK 

BOOKS.  —  INDIAN  PAPER.  —  LINEN  CLOTH. SKINS.  —  GOLD  MSS. 

GRADUAL  OF  ST.  GREGORY. PARCHMENT. PURPLE  VELLUM. 

—  SILK    PAPER  —  COTTON  —  LINEN.   —  CODEX    ARGENTEUS.   — 
BLOCK  PRINTING.  — MARCO  POLO. 


c  Papyrus,  verdant  on  the  banks  of  Nile, 
Spread  its  thin  leaf,  and  waved  its  silvery  style; 
Its  plastic  pellicles  Invention  took, 
To  form  the  polish'd  page,  and  letter'd  book, 
And  on  its  folds,  with  skill  consummate  taught 
To  paint  in  mystic  colors  sound  and  thought." 


Pompeii. 
THE  following  afternoon  the  conversation  was  resumed. 


PAPYRI  OF  HERCULANEUM.  31 

MRS.  F. 

In  order  that  I  may  be  able  to  give  you  a  more  detailed 
account  of  tlje  various  modes  and  materials  employed  for 
transmitting  knowledge  before  the  discovery  of  printing,  I 
have  brought  down  some  notes  which  I  made  upon  the  subject 
many  years  since:  but,  before  we  leave  the  subject  of  Manu- 
scripts, I  must  tell  you  something  of  the  papyri  discovered  at 
Herculaneum. 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt;  I  should  so  much  like  to  know  all  about 
the  Herculaneum  and  Pompeii  MSS. 


Herculaneum. 


MRS.  F. 

Not  Pompeii,  Henrietta,  for  those  which  were  found  in 
that  city  fall  into  powder  as  soon  as  touched.  Those  of 
Herculaneum  alone  are  in  a  state  to  be  unrolled,  and  the  diffi- 
culty and  delicacy  of  the  undertaking  render  it  a  most  lar 
borious  and  ingenious  operation. 

ESTHER. 
Where  were  these  papyri  found  ? 

MRS.  F. 

In  prosecuting  the  excavations  at  Herculaneum,  the  work- 
men cam.e,  in  1753,  to  a  small  room  which  had  presses  all 
round  it,  and  one  in  the  centre,  containing  books  on  both 
sides,  but  the  wood  of  the  press  was  so  completely  carbonised 
that  it  fell  into  pieces  when  touched. 


32  PAPYRI  OF  HERCULANEUM. 

ESTHER. 

How  did  they  know  they  were  books? 


The  order  in  which  they  were  found,  carefully  arranged  one 
over  the  other,  was  the  only  circumstance  which  excited 
attention,  and  convinced  the  workmen  that  they  could  not  be 
wood  or  cinders.  Upon  closer  examination  characters  were 
discovered  upon  them,  which  the  learned  immediately  occu- 
pied themselves  in  endeavoring  to  decipher. 

HENRIETTA. 

Were  there  none  in  any  other  parts  of  the  city] 

MRS.  F. 

Probably  there  may  have  been  many  lost  to  us,  but  as  they 
were  in  a  mass  with  rubbish,  lava,  &c.  they  could  not  be  re- 
cognised ;  for  you  must  recollect  that  the  excavations  of  Her- 
culaneum  are  about  100  palmi*  under  ground  :  indeed  the 
accumulated  mass  of  lava  and  ashes  has  buried  the  city  at 
depths  from  70  to  112  feet,  and  so  completely  filled  up  the 
town,  that  all  the  work  is  carried  on  with  pickaxes.  It  is  to 
this  room  (which  was  in  a  country  house)  not  being  entirely 
choked  up,  that  we  owe  the  fortunate  circumstance  of  their 
preservation.  A  few  more  were  found  in  the  portico  of  the 
same  house,  preserved  in  little  portable  boxes,  and  some 
others  in  another  room  in  the  same  habitation;  making  together 
1756  manuscripts,  all  written  upon  papyrus.  Various  were 
the  means  employed  to  unroll  them:  some  were  cut  into  two 
longitudinally,  by  which  a  small  portion  of  the  characters 
was  rendered  visible:  in  short,  they  were  subjected  to  all 
kinds  of  attempts,  until  Father  Piaggio  discovered  the  present 
manner  of  unrolling  them. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  it1? 

*  The  Neapolitan  palm  is  rather  more  than  ten  English  inches. 


PAPYRI  OF  HERCULANEUM.  33 

MRS.  F. 

The  papyrus  is  laid  upon  cotton,  supported  by  a  piece  of 
pasteboard,  which  lies  upon  two  setnicircular  pieces  of  metal. 
The  workman  begins  by  glueing  small  pieces  of  goldbeater's 
skin  upon  the  back  of  the  papyrus  until  the  whole  of  the  ex- 
terior of  the  roll  is  covered.  He  then  attaches  three  threads 
to  the  end  of  the  goldbeater's  skin,  and  suspending  them  to 
the  top  of  the  frame,  proceeds,  with  the  point  of  a  needle,  to 
detach  from  the  roll  two  or  three  lines  of  the  end  of  the  pa- 
pyrus, which  has  been  made  of  a  tolerable  consistency  by  the 
addition  of  the  goldbeater's  skin.  As  soon  as  these  lines  are 
unrolled,  the  same  operation  of  applying  the  goldbeater's  skin 
is  repeated,  until,  by  the  greatest  patience  and  diligence,  the 
whole  MS.  is  gradually  unrolled.  Here  is  a  little  sketch  of 
the  machine  (which  is  placed  in  a  kind  of  frame),  which  will 
perhaps  better  enable  you  to  understand  the-  process.  (Fig  1 .) 

HENRIETTA. 

But  then,  aunt,  they  can  only  read  one  side  of  the  page. 

MRS,  F. 

Fortunately,  the  Manuscripts  are  generally  only  written 
upon  one  side  of  the  papyrus,  otherwise  the  operation  would 
be  impossible.  There  is,  however,  one  papyrus  which  is 
written  on  both  sides.  It  would  appear  to  be  an  original 
MS.;  and  the  author  having  filled  the  end  of  his  volume  before 
he  had  arrived  at  the  conclusion  of  his  subject,  has  written 
three  pages  on  the  other  side  of  the  papyrus.  I  also  saw,  in 
the  Ambrosian  library  at  Milan,  a  Josephus  in  papyrus,  which 
is  said  to  be  of  the  fourth  century,  and  is  also  written  upon 
both  sides  of  the  paper. 

ESTHER. 

How  did  the  ancients  arrange  their  books;  because  it  must 
have  been  very  difficult  to  distinguish  one  from  another, 
among  so  many  rolls? 

MRS.  F. 

Those  found  in  the  kind  of  press  or  bookcase  which  I  have 


34  PAPYRI  OF  HERCULANEUM. 

described,  were  arranged  horizontally  along-  the  shelves. 
Their  titles  were  either  written  on  the  end  of  the  papyrus* 
or  upon  a  piece  of  papyrus  paper  fastened  to  the  middle  of 
the  papyrus,  in  this  way  (Fig.  2).  Some  papyri  were  found 
tied  up  in  bundles  (Fig.  3.);  others  in  double  rolls,  as  if  the 
last  reader  had  left  them  open  where  he  left  off  reading  (Fig. 
4.);  and  some  in  a  box,  as  I  have  before  mentioned,  that  they 
might  be  carried  about  in  safety  (Fig.  5).  From  the  blank 
paper  which  is  often  found  round  the  papyri,  it  would  appear 
that  each  volume  had  a  sheet  of  blank  paper  rolled  round  it, 
in  order  to  protect  the  fragile  material  of  which  it  was  com- 
posed. The  marks  of  the  lines  ruled  for  the  guide  of  the 
copyist  are  still  visible;  and  the  ancients  appear  to  have  had 
their  large  paper  copies  of  their  works,  as  well  as  the  moderns. 
The  size  of  the  Greek  MSS.  is  generally  smaller  than  the 
Latin ;  the  former  being  from  8  to  12  inches,  the  latter  from 
twelve  to  sixteen,  broad.  Some  are  110  pages  long,  others 
upwards  of  62  feet  (75  palmi)  by  measurement.  This  is  an 
engraving  shaded  so  as  to  give  an  idea  of  the  state  of  the 
MSS.  when  unrolled  (Engraving  II). 

HENRIETTA. 

What  a  ragged,  torn  looking  thing. 

MRS.  F. 

True ;  but  when  you  take  into  consideration  the  difficulty 
of  the  task,  it  is  wonderful  that  the  unrolling  is  ever  effected 
at  all.  If  the  glue  be  put  on  in  too  large  quantities,  it  will 
probably  remove  a  portion  of  the  next  layer  of  the  papyrus;  a 
breath  of  air  will  carry  away  all  these  pulverized  particles, 
and  dust  is  so  fatal,  that  one  Manuscript  having  become 
covered  with  dust,  it  took  a  whole  year  to  remove  it. 

*  Whether  the  title  was  also  written,  as  some  suppose,  at  the 
beginning,  cannot  be  discovered  from  the  papyri  of  Herculaneum, 
none  of  them  being  in  a  sufficient  state  of  preservation  to  decide 
the  point. 


PAPYRI  OF  HERCULANEUM.  35 

ESTHER. 

Then,  what  is  done  with  those  that  are  unrolled  to  prevent 
such  an  accident. 


They  are  put  into  frames  with  glasses  over  them,  and  are 
eventually  hung  up  in  the  Museum.  One  has  been  left  in 
its  whole  length  in  order  to  give  an  idea  of  the  original  form 
and  extent  of  the  MSS. ;  but  this  system  has  not  been  fol- 
lowed, it  being  found  more  convenient  for  the  draughtsmen 
and  interpreters,  to  divide  the  papyrus  into  several  fragments, 
as  they  require  to  turn  the  page  in  different  lights  in  order 
the  better  to  decipher  the  characters.  The  manuscript  is 
first  passed  to  the  draughtsman,  who  copies  the  characters 
with  the  greatest  exactness,  so  as  to  render  it  a  complete  fac- 
simile of  the  original ;  his  copy  is  then  submitted  to  the  in- 
spection of  the  interpreters,  who  having  approved  of  it,  pass 
it  to  the  engraver ;  he,  having  engraved  it,  returns  it  to  the 
interpreters,  who  then  publish  it  in  their  learned  and  elabo- 
rate work.  Here  is  a  little  specimen,  which,  although  you 
do  not  understand  Greek,  will  show  you  the  method  of  pro- 
ceeding. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  many  manuscripts  are  unrolled? 

MRS.  F. 

Of  the  1756  papyri  found  at  Herculaneum,  210  have  been 
entirely  and  usefully  unrolled;*  127  have  been  partly  opened; 
but  the  work  has  been  suspended  from  finding  them  illegible; 
and  205  could  not  be  unrolled  because  they  were  not  suffi- 
ciently compact  to  bear  the  application  of  the  goldbeater's 
skin;  27  have  been  presented  by  the  government  to  England 
and  France ;  23  have  been  used  for  the  purposes  of  experi- 
ment ;  and  1164  remain  untouched :  so  they  may  yet  contain 
much  that  is  valuable  and  interesting,  f 

*  This  is  the  report  of  1835. 

t  See  Officina  de'  Papiri  descritta  dal  Canonico  de  Jorio. 


36  PAPYRUS  PAPER  MADE  AT  MEMPHIS. 

FREDERICK. 

What  are  the  subjects  of  those  which  have  heen  unrolled! 

MRS.  F. 

This  library  was  found  in  what  appears  to  have  been  the 
country  house  of  an  Epicurean  philosopher,  and  the  works 
which  have  been  as  yet  deciphered  are  naturally  those  of  his 
school :  all,  I  believe,  are  writings  which  were  before  un- 
known to  the  moderns;  and  when  we  reflect  upon  the  number 
yet  to  be  unrolled,  we  may  hope  that  great  riches  are  still 
concealed  in  this  unique  collection.  Whatever  may  be,  how- 
ever, the  intrinsic  value  of  the  writings  already  published, 
they  may  yet  serve  to  elucidate  others  of  greater  interest;  and 
therefore,  the  plan  which  the  academy  adopt,  of  publishing 
every  fragment  which  they  unroll,  is  the  most  prudent,  the 
most  useful,  and  the  most  likely  to  lead  to  beneficial  results. 

ESTHER. 

WThere  was  papyrus  paper  first  manufactured,  mamma'? 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  unknown ;  but  there  existed  manufactories  of  it  at 
Memphis  300  years  before  the  reign  of  Alexander.  After- 
wards, and  at  the  time  of  the  conquest  of  Egypt  by  the 
Romans,  it  was  chiefly  made  at  Alexandria.  Till  this  con- 
quest, however,  the  paper  was  of  an  inferior  quality,  but  the 
Roman  artists  paid  great  attention  to  its  improvement;  and  it 
was  exported  in  large  quantities  from  Egypt.  The  possession 
of  that  country  by  the  Saracens  interrupted  and  diminished 
the  export,  and  few  manuscripts  on  papyrus  are  of  a  later 
date  than  the  eighth  or  ninth  century. 

ESTHER. 

Of  what  part  of  the  plant  was  it  made? 

MRS.  F. 

The  learned  differ  upon  this  point ;  but  I  believe  the  most 
received  opinion  is,  that  it  was  made  from  the  stalk  (the 


MODE  OF  MANUFACTURING  PAPYRUS. 


37 


upper  and  lower  extremities  of  which  were  rejected*),  which 
was  divided  longitudinally  into  small  thin  plates.  These 
were  placed  side  by  side,  and  then  others  put  across  them  to 
strengthen  and  unite  them.  The  whole  was  dried  with  a 
woollen  cloth,  and,  after  some  other  preparations,  rendered  fit 
for  writing  upon.f  The  papyrus  is  still  found  in  the  river 
Anapus  near  Syracuse,  where  it  was  probably  transported 
by  Hiero£  (or  some  of  the  other  tyrants  of  Syracuse)  from 
Egypt.§ 


Papyrus. 

ESTHER. 

How  I  should  like  to  see  it  growing! 

MRS.  F. 

The  Syracusan  farmers  used  to  cut  it  to  bind  up  their 
sheaves  of  corn;  but  this  custom  is  now  prohibited ;  and  the 

*  This  portion  of  the  stalk  served  to  make  an  inferior  description 
of  paper. 

t  De  Jorio.  J  Denon. 

§  According  to  Pliny  the  roots  of  the  papyrus  served  for  fuel,  and 
the  bark  was  converted  into  sails,  mats,  and  ropes;  its  juice  was  ap- 
plied to  medicinal  purposes;  the  farina  of  the  flower  afforded  the 
strongest  gluten;  its  stalk  was  twisted  into  canoes  and  boats;  and 
indeed,  it  is  in  a  basket  of  papyrus  that  Moses  is  supposed  to  have 
been  exposed  upon  the  Nile. 

-  4 


38  LAWS  SET  TO  MUSIC. 

graceful  papyrus,  bending  its  tufted  head  over  the  clear  waters 
of  the  river,  presents  a  most  elegant  study  to  the  artist.  An 
attempt  at  reviving  the  papyrus  paper  has  been  made,  by  the 
Chevalier  Landolina*  of  Syracuse;  but  as  the  best  papyrus 
paper  could  only  prove  a  poor  substitute  for  linen  paper,  the 
attempt  is  a  mere  object  of  antiquarian  curiosity.  But  I  think 
that  we  must  now  dismiss  the  subject  of  papyrus,  and  pro- 
ceed to  the  other  various  materials  and  methods  employed 
for  transmitting  knowledge. 

FREDERICK. 

Thank  you,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  earliest  ages  of  society,  the  simple  laws  which  were 
then  sufficient  for  a  community  were,  among  the  Greeks,  set 
to  music  and  chanted  or  sung,  f  This  mode  of  conveying  in- 
struction was  continued  to  a  later  period,  and  was  so  cus- 
tomary among  the  Teutonic  nations,  that  paraphrases  of  the 
Bible  were  not  unfrequently  made  in  verse;  the  achievements 
of  their  ancestors  were  celebrated  in  song,  and,  as  I  before 
said,  the  Scriptures  themselves  were  turned  into  rhyme. 

ESTHER. 

There  is  a  very  interesting  account  of  Caedmon,  the  great 
Saxon  versifier  of  the  Bible,  in  Sir  Francis  Palgrave's  enter- 
taining History  of  England.  I  will  read  it  to  you  this  evening. 

MRS.  F. 

The  next  step  in  transmitting  knowledge  was  the  en- 
graving of  their  laws,  by  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  upon 
tables  of  wood,  ivory,  brass,  or  stone. 

ESTHER. 

I  have  often  heard  of  the  Arundelian  Marbles  being  referred 
to  for  dates;  pray,  mamma,  what  are  they? 

*  Hughes's  Travels,  vol.  i.  p.  90. 

t  See  Sir  Francis  Palgrave's  Anglo-Saxon  History,  and  the  life 
of  Caxton,  in  the  Library  of  Useful  Knowledge,  from  which  the 
following  account  is  principally  taken. 


THE  ARUNDEL1AN  MARBLES.  39 

MRS.  F. 

The  Arundelian  consist  of  a  series  of  sculptured  marbles, 
collected  in  Greece  at  the  expense  of  Thomas  Howard,  who 
was  Earl  of  Arundel  in  the  reigns  of  James  and  Charles  the 
First.  They  comprise  statues  and  gems  as  well  as  inscrip- 
tions. The  latter  are  those  to  which  you  allude,  and  which 
are  the  objects  of  our  present  attention.  They  were  inserted 
into  the  walls  of  the  garden  at  the  back  of  Arundel  House  in 
the  Strand,  and  were  examined  by  Seldon,  who  deciphered 
and  published  several  of  the  inscriptions  in  1628.  During 
the  civil  wars,  the  Arundel  family  being  obliged  to  leave 
their  mansion,  the  parliament  put  it  under  sequestration,  and 
suffered  the  marbles  to  be  plundered  and  defaced.  It  is  even 
asserted  that  part  of  the  Parian  Chronicle  was  worked  up  in 
repairing  a  chimney;  and  it  is  supposed  that  not  more  than 
half  of  these  valuable  inscriptions  escaped  destruction.  Those 
that  were  preserved  were  presented  to  the  University  of 
Oxford,  where  they  still  remain. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  the  nature  of  the  inscriptions'? 

MRS.  F. 

Principally  records  of  treaties,  public  contracts,  public 
thanks  of  the  state  to  individuals,  &c.;  but  the  most  curious 
inscription  is  that  to  which  I  have  just  alluded  —  the 
Parian  Chronicle  —  which  gives  a  chronological  account  of 
the  principal  events  in  Grecian  (particularly  in  Athenian) 
history,  from  the  time  of  Cecrops*  to  the  year  B.  C.  264;  a 
period  of  1318  years,  f  But  to  return  to  engraving  upon 
metals. 

FREDERICK. 

Aunt,  I  can  give  you  an  instance:  the  Roman  soldiers  were 
allowed,  on  the  field  of  battle,  to  write  their  wills  upon  their 
bucklers  or  scabbards. 

*  B.  C.  1582. 

t  Elme's  Dictionary  of  the  Fine  Arts. 


40  WILLS  OF  THE  ROMAN  SOLDIERS. 


Well  recollected,  Frederick.  I  am  glad  to  see  that  you  can 
apply  your  reading;  but  we  must  not  wander  from  our  history 
of  writing.  Brass,  lead,  and  copper  were  used  for  inscrip- 
tions, but  wood  was  most  generally  employed,  both  for  public 
as  well  as  for  private  purposes.  In  the  fourth  century,  the 
laws  of  the  empire  were  inscribed  upon  wooden  tables. 

ESTHER. 
Did  not  the  ancients  write  upon  bone  or  ivory? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes.  Among  the  relics  in  the  Museum  at  Naples,  is  a 
number  of  small  oblong  sheets  of  bone,  fastened  at  their  ex- 
tremity by  a  piece  of  metal,  which  runs  through  a  hole  per- 
forated through  each,  just  like  those  which  are  used  by  us  for 
memoranda.  The  ancients  wrote  upon  these  tablets  with 
pencils  of  minium,  or  red  lead,  which  is  rubbed  out  as  easily 
as  our  black  lead;  so  you  see  that  even  this  little  contrivance 
is  not  a  modern  invention.* 

FREDERICK. 

But  did  not  the  Romans  cover  their  tablets  with  wax1? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes.  With  their  manner  of  writing  upon  them,  with  a 
metal  or  ivory  style,  you  are  no  doubt  well  acquainted;  but 
these  waxen  tablets  were  employed  till  a  very  late  period. 
At  Geneva,  I  saw  in  the  library  a  fragment  of  the  account  of 
the  household  expenses  of  Philip  the  Fair,f  written  upon 
waxen  tablets  with  a  style.  The  MS.  is  almost  illegible 
now,  but  was  deciphered  before  it  became  in  such  bad  order. £ 

'   ^-   ^  ESTHER. 

Shakspeare  alludes  to  the  table  books  in  Henry  the 
Fourth,§  when  the  Archbishop  of  York  says, 


*  De  Jorio.   ,  f  For  part  of  the  year  1308. 

J  Valery,  vol.  i.  p.  18.  §  Part  ii.  act.  iv.  sc.  1. 


ANCIENT  WOOD-ENGRAVINGS.  41 

"  And  therefore  Will  he  wipe  his  tables  clean, 
And  keep  no  tell-tale  to  his  memory;" 

and  Hamlet  also,  after  his  interview  with  his  father's  ghost, 
says,* 

"  My  tables  —meet  it  is  I  set  it  down." 

MRS.  F. 

We  also  read  that  Lady  Jane  Grey  gave  her  tables  to  Sir 
John  Gage,  the  Constable  of  the  Tower,  before  her  execution; 
but,  we  must  now  proceed  to  writing  or  engraving  upon  wood. 

ESTHER. 

The  Scandinavian  nations  appear  always  to  have  employed 
wood,  before  their  communications  with  the  Latin  Mission- 
aries; and  Sir  F.  Palgrave  says  that  our  verb  to  write,  is  de- 
rived from  a  Teutonic  root,  signifying  to  scratch  or  tear,f 
and  is  one  of  the  testimonies  of  this  usage.  The  Cymri 
adopted  the  same  plan.  Their  poems  were  graven  upon  small 
stems  or  rods,  one  line  upon  each  face  of  the  rod;  and  the  old 
English  word,  stave,  as  applied  to  a  stanza,  is  probably  a 
relic  of  the  practice  which,  in  early  ages,  prevailed  in  the 
West.  In  the  East,  you  will  find  the  same  custom  still  sub- 
sisting. The  slips  of  bamboo,  upon  which  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Indian  Archipelago  now  write  or  scratch  their  compo- 
sitions with  a  bodkin,  are  substantially  the  same  with  our 
ancient  staves. "£ 

HENRIETTA. 

WThat  kind  of  wood  was  used? 

MRS.  F. 

The  ancients  employed  box  and  citron  wood,  but  beech 
was  principally  used  in  the  middle  ages. 

ESTHER. 

Were  not  leaves  also  used! 

*  Act  i.  sc.  v.  t  Ritzen  or  reissen. 

%  Anglo-Saxon  History,  p.  153. 

4* 


42  THE  TALIPOT-TREE. 

\ 

MRS.  F. 

Yes ;  and  even  in  the  present  day,  several  of  the  eastern 
nations  employ  the  leaves  of  the  Talipot-tree.* 

Hence  the  word  folio,  from  folium  a  leaf,  and  the  meaning 
of  leaf  when  applied  to  books.  But  this  mode  of  writing 
seems  to  have  been  superseded  by  the  use  of  the  inner  bark 
of  trees,  of  the  lime  particularly.  This  bark  the  Romans 
calied  liber;  hence  the  Latin  word  for  a  book,  and  the  English 
words  derived  from  it,  library,  &c.  Our  Saxon  ancestors 
commonly  employed  the  bark  of  the  beech  tree,  called  hoc, 
in  their  language,  whence  our  word  book  owes  its  origin.  A 
library  of  bark  books  has  recently  been  discovered  among 
the  Calmucs';  the  Birmans  still  use  bark  for  their  writings; 
and  the  Indian  paper,  employed  by  engravers  for  their  fine 
engravings,  is  also  made  of  bark.  It  is  imported  from  China; 
its  beauty  consists  in  the  paleness  of  its  color,  and  the  tex- 
ture is  so  delicate  that  it  is  never  pasted;  the  mere  blow  given 
in  stamping  the  copper-plate  upon  it  being  sufficient  to  attach 
it  to  the  paper  upon  which  it  is  laid. 


Linen  cloth,  upon  which  the  letters  were  painted,  was 
used  by  the  Egyptians ;  and  I  recollect  seeing  a  large  roll  of 
it  which  had  been  taken  out  of  a  mummy  in  the  Museum  you 
took  us  to  see. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  and  the  same  material  was  also  employed  by  the 
Romans:  but  skins  of  animals  were,  according  to  Herodotus, 
first  adapted  to  the  purposes  of  writing  by  the  lonians,  who 
could  only  procure  papyrus  at  a  great  expense;  those  of 
sheep,  goats,  and  asses  were  preferred;  and  the  Persians  also 
employed  the  same  material.  Leather  or  skins,  prepared  in 
the  modern  manner,  were  often  used  by  the  Jews,  on  which 
to  write  the  Scriptures ;  and  the  poems  of  Homer  were  once 
written  upon  the  intestines  of  a  serpent,  in  letters  of  gold, 
and  the  MS.  was  120  feet  long. 

*  Corypha  umbraculifera. 


POEMS  OF  HOMER.  43 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  this  still  to  be  seen,  aunt? 

MRS.  F. 

No:  it  was  deposited  in  the  Philadelphian  Library,  and 
afterwards  taken  to  Constantinople,  where  it  was  destroyed 
by  fire  in  the  sixth  century. 

HENRIETTA. 

Did  they  often  write  in  gold  letters  1 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  many  MSS.  so  written  are  scattered  in  the  various 
libraries  of  Europe.  There  is  a  Gospel  in  the  Laurentian 
Library  at  Florence  in  letters  of  gold,*  and  at  Monza,  I  saw 
a  most  interesting  manuscript —the  Gradual  (or  choir  book) 
given  by  St.  Gregory  to  the  Cathedral  of  Monza.  It  is  of 
purple  leather,  and  the  letters  are  in  gold  and  silver.  In  this 
collection,  is  also  a  precious  papyrus  inventory  of  the  relics 
presented  by  that  great  pope  to  Queen  Theolinda,  the  founder 
of  the  cathedral. 

ESTHER. 

I  think,  mamma,  that  parchment  and  paper  are  the  only 
two  materials  which  you  have  not  alluded  to. 

MRS.  F. 

Papyrus  paper  was  used  before  parchment  was  known ; 
the  invention  of  the  latter  being  attributed  to  a  quarrel  be- 
tween Eumenes,  King  of  Pergamus,  j  and  the  King  of  Egypt, 
in  consequence  of  which  the  latter  prohibited  the  exportation 
of  papyrus,  and  Eumenes  invented  parchment  as  a  substitute. 
But  this  story  is  now  considered  to  be  destitute  of  foundation, 
for  parchment  is  mentioned  as  having  been  known  long  be- 
fore the  age  of  the  Ptolemies,  and  it  is  therefore  probable 
that  Eumenes  only  improved  its  manufacture. 

*  Valery,  vol.  iii.  p.  48.     St.  Boniface  brought  from  England  into 
Germany  the  Epistles  of  St.  Peter  written  in  letters  of  gold, 
f  The  second  of  that  name — died  B.  C.  159. 


44  INVENTION  OF  PARCHMENT. 

FREDERICK. 

Then  comes  vellum,  I  suppose,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

It  only  being  a  finer  kind  of  parchment,  prepared  from  the 
skins  of  very  young  calves,  I  need  not  allude  to  it  separately, 
except  to  tell  you  that  MSS.  exist  of  purple  vellum. f  Paper 
now  is  the  only  material  which  we  have  not  enumerated.  Its 
earliest  fabrication  was,  as  you  all  know,  of  papyrus. 

ESTHER. 

From  which  comes  our  word  paper. 

MRS.  F. 

Papyrus  paper  we  have  already  fully  discussed.  Silk 
paper  has  been  made  from  the  earliest  times,  by  the  Chinese, 
who,  about  the  year  A.  D.  649,  introduced  the  manufactory  to 
Samarcand;  and,  when  this  city  was  conquered  by  the  Sara- 
cens, an  Arabian  learned  the  art,  and,  employing  cotton  instead 
of  silk,  made  his  paper  at  Mecca  A.  D.  7064  From  that 
city  the  manufacture  spread  over  all  the  Saracen  dominions, 
and  was  particularly  carried  on  in  Spain,  where,  in  the  twelfth 
century,  the  town  of  Sativa,  (now  San  Philippo)  in  Valencia, 
was  celebrated  for  its  paper,  the  manufacturers  having  sub- 
stituted flax,  which  grew  in  abundance,  to  cotton,  which  was 
scarce  and  dear.  Alphonso  of  Castile  established  a  manu- 
factory in  the  Christian  states  of  Spain,  whence  it  passed  in 
the  14th  century  into  Italy;  and  linen  paper,  such  as  we  now 
employ,  became  of  general  us-e.:}:  I  have  now  given  you  a 
tolerably  connected  account  of  paper  and  its  substitutes. 
"With  the  history  of  printing  you  probably  are  already  ac- 
quainted, and  I  therefore  leave  the  subject,  only  observing, 
'that  the  most  remarkable  point  in  the  history  of  this  art, 

*  There  is  a  manuscript  of  the  Gospels  of  the  sixth  or  seventh 
century  at  Brescia,  which  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  in  purple  vel- 
lum.—  Valery,  vol.  i.  p.  249. 

f  The  Arabian  MSS.  are  generally  on  silk  paper. 

$  Sismondi,  Lit.  du  Mid.  de  PEurope,  vol.  i.  p.  72. 


DISCOVERY  OF  THE  ART  OF  PRINTING.  45 

which  has  been  destined  to  change  the  moral  aspect  of  the 
globe,  is  not  its  so  called  discovery  by  Guttemberg  or  Koster, 
but  the  great  length  of  time  which  elapsed  before  it  was  put 
into  use  by  the  nations  of  Western  Christendom;"  for  we 
know  that  the  Romans  employed  solid  types  or  stamps,  with 
i  aised  letters,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  off  short  inscriptions, 
and  the  Visigoths  in  Spain  printed  the  signs  which  they 
affixed  to  their  deeds  and  charters.  The  silver  letters  of  the 
4 '  Codex  Argenteus"  are  by  some  thought  to  have  been  pro- 
duced by  metal  types. 

HENRIETTA. 

Pray,  aunt,  what  is  that1? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  a  copy  of  the  translation  of  the  Gospels  by  Ulphilas, 
\vho  was  bishop  of  the  Mreso-Goths  in  the  4th  century.  This 
is  the  most  ancient  document  extant  of  the  Gothic  tongue, 
from  which  all  the  modem  northern  languages  are  derived, 
and  it  is  now  preserved  in  the  University  of  Upsal,  having 
formed  part  of  the  booty  at  the  taking  of  Prague  in  1648. 

FREDERICK. 

But  why  is  it  called  JLrgenteus  ? 

MRS.  F. 

Because  the  binding  of  the  book,  and  its  letters,  are  of 
silver.  The  parchment,  I  should  also  tell  you,  is  purple. 
But,  as  I  mentioned  before,  metal  types  are  by  some  supposed 
to  have  been  used  in  it;  and  block  printing,  we  know,  was 
understood  at  an  early  period  in  China,  where  its  operation 
must  have  been  witnessed  by  Marco  Polo,  the  celebrated 
Venetian  traveller  of  the  13th  century. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  never  heard  of  Marco  Polo. 

MRS.  F. 

Then  I  recommend  you  to  read  his  life,  because  he  is  a 
character  of  no  small  literary  importance.  Marco  Polo  is  no 


46  MARCO  POLO. 

less  celebrated  for  the  singularity  of  his  adventures  and  the 
vast  extent  of  country  through  which  he  traversed,  than  for 
the  effect  produced  by  the  relation  of  his  travels  upon  the 
progress  of  navigation  and  commerce.  The  north  and  east 
of  Asia,  the  islands  of  the  East,  and  the  extremity  of  Africa 
were  then  wholly  unknown;  and  thus  Marco  Polo,  and  the 
learned  cosmographers  who  first  gave  credit  to  his  narrative, 
may  be  said  to  have  prepared  the  way  for  the  two  greatest 
geographical  discoveries  of  modern  times — the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  and  America.  By  Marco  Polo's  travels,  the  erroneous 
notions  of  the  ancients  disappeared;  science  became  regene- 
rated ;  and  if,  in  the  long  series  of  ages,  we  search  for  those 
men  who,  by  the  greatness  and  influence  of  their  discoveries, 
have  most  contributed  to  the  progress  of  geography  and  a 
knowledge  of  the  globe,  the  modest  name  of  the  Venetian 
traveller  may  be  placed  in  the  same  line  with  those  of  Alex- 
ander the  Great  and  Christopher  Columbus. 

ESTHER. 
Were  his  travels  believed  at  the  time? 

MRS.  F. 

His  narrative  was  read  with  eagerness,  but  was  considered, 
by  many,  to  be  such  a  tissue  of  falsehood  and  exaggeration, 
that  the  friends  and  relatives  of  Marco  Polo  entreated  him, 
when  on  his  death-bed,  to  retract  or  disavow  the  passages 
which  the  world  regarded  as  fiction;  but  Marco  Polo  declared 
that,  so  far  from  having  exaggerated  the  truth,  he  had  not 
related  half  the  wonders  to  which  he  had  been  eye  witness  ; 
but,  like  our  own  countryman  Bruce,  he  could  not  gain  cre- 
dence for  what  subsequent  travellers  have  proved  to  be  fact. 

FREDERICK. 

I  can't  see  why  he  was  not  believed! 

MRS.  F. 

When  we  take  the  knowledge  of  the  age  into  consideration, 
there  was  nothing  extraordinary  in  the  incredulity  of  the 
public;  for  the  Tartars  were,  at  that  time,  considered  as 


MARCO  POLO.  47 

savages  scarcely  possessing-  the  human  form:  and,  when 
M,arco  Polo  spoke  of  a  Tartar  empire  larger  and  more  civilised 
than  the  whole  of  Europe,  governed  by  an  emperor,  having  a 
court  and  regular  tribunals  of  justice — when  he  spoke  of 
China,  its  manners  and  institutions,  so  remote  from  those 
which  were  then  known,  of  animals  of  new  forms,  and  of 
natural  phenomena  so  strange  —  how  could  he  expect,  in  an 
ignorant  age,  to  gain  credence  for  half  the  wonders  which  he 
recounted  1  * 

*  Walckenaer,  in  Biographic  Universelle. 


48 
CHAPTER  III. 

THE  FLOWER  GARDEN. 

MIMULUS  MOSCHATUS. —  CENTAUREA  MOSCHATA.  —  MTJSCARIA  PINNA-. 
TIFIDA.  — MUSK  RAT.  — GOAT  MOTH.  — ACANTHUS.  —  CARTHAMUS 
TINCTOR1US.  —  ROUGE.  —  CROCUS  SATIVUS.  —  CARLINA  AGAUL1S. 
ONOPORDUM  ACANTH1UM.  —  AZALEA  PONTICA.  —  GEOGRAPHI- 
CAL DISTRIBUTION  OF  BEES.  —  HONEY  OF  MADAGASCAR  AND  OF 

NARBONNE.  BODY    OF    ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT.  GRAFTS. 

APPLES  AND   FISH    IN  WAX. LEAF-CUTTING   AND   MASON   BEE. — 

HUBER. INSECTS  ON    COMPOSITE.  —  DAHLIA.  —  ARBUTUS.  —  CA- 
MELLIA.   CALMUC  TEA. STEPPES  OF  ASIA. 


"  Methinks  T  see  great  Dioclesian  walk 
In  the  Salonian  garden's  noble  shade, 
Which  by  his  own  imperial  hands  was  made. 
I  see  him  smile,  roethinks,  as  he  does  talk 
With  the  ambassadors,  who  come  in  vain 
T'  entice  him  to  a  throne  again. 
« If  I,  my  friends,'  said  he,  *  should  to  you  show 
All  the  delights  which  in  these  gardens  grow, 
'Tis  likelier  far  that  you  with  me  should  stay 
Than  'tis  that  you  should  carry  me  away: 
And  trust  me  not,  my  friends,  if,  every  day, 
I  walk  not  here  with  more  delight 
Than  ever,  after  the  most  happy  fight, 
In  triumph  to  the  capitol  I  rode, 
To  thank  the  gods,  and  to  be  thought  almost  myself  a  god.'  " 

COWLET'S  Garden. 


THE  next  day  being  fine,  Mrs.  Fortescue  proposed  a  visit 
to  Mrs.  Clifford. 

"  What  a  delightful  smell  of  musk!"  exclaimed  Henrietta, 
as  they  passed  by  a  bed  of  small  yellow  flowers. 


MIMULUS  MOSCHATUS.  49 

MRS.  CLIFFORD. 

That  is  the  Mimulus  moschatus,  which  affords,  I  believe 
the  strongest  instance  of  musk  in  the  vegetable  kingdom.  I 
have  seen  a  perfume  distilled  from  this  plant,  which  is  nearly 
as  powerful  as  the  animal  musk. 

MRS.  F. 

But  the  Sweet  Sultan  (Centaurea  moschata)  emits  also  a 
strong  musky  smell;  and  this  pretty  little  white  flower, 
Muscaria  pinnatifida,  is  likewise  very  powerful. 

MRS.  c. 

I  have  a  great  dislike  to  the  smell  of  musk;  and,  when  I 
was  in  India,  I  used  to  be  much  annoyed  by  the  musk  rat, 
whose  smell  is  so  strong,  that,  if  one  of  these  animals  passes 
over  a  bottle  of  wine,  the  subtile  particles  of  the  musk  pene- 
trate the  cork,  and  impart  so  disagreeable  a  flavor  to  the 
wine,  that  it  is  impossible  to  drink  it. 

FREDERICK. 

I  once  kept  the  caterpillar  of  a  goat  moth*  for  some  time, 
and  it  smelt  as  strongly  of  musk  as  any  of  these  flowers. 

ESTHER. 

How  did  you  contrive  to  secure  it,  Frederick;  for  the  goat 
caterpillar  will  eat  through  a  common  deal  box  1 

FREDERICK. 

My  box  was  coated  with  tin,  and  bored  with  small  holes 
to  admit  the  air.  I  used  to  feed  the  caterpillar  mostly  upon 
apples,  of  which  it  would  eat  a  great  quantity  in  the  course 
of  the  day.  These  caterpillars  live,  as  you  know,  inside  the 
trunks  of  willows  and  other  trees;  and  mine  appeared  to  dis- 
like the  air  so  much,  that,  whenever  I  took  the  cover  off  the 
box,  it  would  spin  a  web  over  itself  by  way  of  protection. f 

MRS.  F. 

The  muscular  powers,:}:  the  voracity,  the  long  duration  of 

*  Cossus  ligniperda.  t  Fact. 

$  According  to  Lyonnet  it  has  4041  muscles. 


50  CARTHAMUS  TiNCTORIUS. 

this  caterpillar,  and  all  the  interesting  details  of  its  history,  are 
so  fully  described  from  the  labors  of  Lyonnet  and  other  natu- 
ralists, that  you  will  have  read  almost  every  particular  con- 
cerning it  in  the  volumes  upon  Insects  published  in  the  "  Li- 
brary of  Entertaining  Knowledge."  But  here,  Frederick,  is 
a  plant  which  you  will  be  pleased  to  see,  the  Acanthus,*  so 
celebrated  in  your  classic  reading. 

HENRIETTA. 

Oh!  you  refer,  aunt,  to  the  story  of  Callimachus,  and  the 
invention  of  the  Corinthian  capital  1 

MRS.  F. 

Virgil  also  makes  mention  of  it;  he  describes  the  dress  of 
Dido,  which  had  originally  belonged  to  Helen,  as  being  em- 
broidered with  the  Acanthus.f 

ESTHER. 

What  a  brilliant  orange  this  flower  is! 


Carlhamus  Tinctorius. 

MRS.  C. 

That  is  the  Carthamus  tindorius,  the  Safflower  or  Saf- 
franum  of  commerce,  which  is  cultivated  chiefly  in  Spain 
and  in  the  Levant.  The  flowers  contain  a  yellow  and  a  red 
coloring  matter;  the  latter  only  is  used.  Rouge  is  the  red 

*  Acanthus  mollis.  t  Aeneid,  b.  i.  1.  649. 


CARLINA  ACAULIS.  51' 

coloring  matter,  obtained  by  digesting  tbe  flowers  in  a  solu- 
tion of  carbonate  of  soda,  and  adding  lemon  juice,  which 
throws  it  down  in  the  form  of  a  fine  powder,  which  is  dried 
and  mixed  with  a  portion  of  talc.  Carthamus  is  likewise 
used  to  dye  woollens  and  silks,  and  also  is  employed  to 
adulterate  the  true  saffron,  which  consists,  as  you  all  know, 
of  the  fragment  stigmas  of  Crocus  saiivus. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  at  Saffron  Walden,  in  Essex,  where  it  was  said  to  be 
introduced  in  the  reign  of  Edward  III,  the  meadows  are 
purple,  in  the  autumn,  with  the  flowers  of  this  Crocus,  which 
is  cultivated  there  solely  for  the  saffron;  and  I  have  heard 
that  the  corporation  of  Walden  bear  three  saffron  plants  in 
their  arms. 

MRS.  c. 
Here  is  a  plant  which  you  do  not  often  see  in  the  garden. 

MRS.  F. 

Oh!  Car  Una  acaulis,  a  plant  I  have  constantly  seen  growing 
wild  on  the  Continent;  and  in  Sicily,  its  receptacle  is  eaten  as 
we  do  in  England  that  of  the  artichoke.  But,  while  we  are 
on  the  subject  of  thistles,  allow  me  to  point  out  to  my  little 
party  that  fine  Onnpordum  acanthium,  which,  I  believe,  is 
generally  cultivated  as  the  true  Scotch  thistle.* 

ESTHER. 

Here  is  the  American  part  of  the  Garden,  which  looked 
beautiful  in  the  spring. 

MRS.  F. 

T  I  see,  Mrs.  Clifford,  that  you  keep  bees;  are  you  not  afraid 
that  they  should  gather  the  honey  of  your  Azaleas  and 
Kalmias? 

MRS.  c. 

I  have  never  heard  of  any  ill  consequences  attending  their 
doing  so. 

*  Hooker. 


52  ARMY  OF  XENOPHON. 

MRS.  F. 

But  most  of  that  family*  are  supposed  to  be  noxious.  In 
1790,  when  there  was  an  extensive  mortality  among-  those 
who  had  eaten  the  honey  collected  in  the  vicinity  of  Phila- 
delphia, it  was  ascertained  that  the  honey  was  chiefly  ex- 
tracted from  the  flowers  of  Kalmia  laiifolia,  and,  as  you 
recollect,  it  is  supposed  that  the  honey  which  proved  so  fatal 
to  the  Army  of  Xenophon  was  collected  from  the  Azalea. 

FREDERICK. 

Do  you  mean,  aunt,  in  the  famous  retreat  of  the  Ten 
Thousand,  after  the  battle  of  CunaxaTj" 

MRS.  F. 

Precisely  so.  Tournefort,  who  travelled  in  Asia  Minor, 
ascertained  that  Jlzalea  pontica,  which  grows  plentifully 
about  Trebizond  and  its  vicinity,  produces  effects  similar  to 
those  which  Xenophon  describes  as  having  been  experienced 
by  those  among  his  soldiers  who  ate  of  the  honey  of  Trape- 
zus;t:  and  Tournefort  brings  in  corroboration  of  his  assertion 
the  testimony  of  Father  Lamberti,  a  missionary,  who  observes 
that  the  honey  collected  by  the  bees  from  a  certain  shrub 
(answering,  by  his  description,  to  the  Azalea  pontica,}  which 
grows  commonly  in  Colchis,  is  highly  pernicious,  and  excites 
sickness,  headachs,  &c.  He  also  adds,  that  the  smell  of  the 
flower  resembles  that  of  the  honeysuckle,  but  is  much 
stronger.§ 

MARV. 

Did  many  of  Xenophon's  army  die'? 

MRS.  F. 

None.  Xenophon  relates  that  those  who  ate  of  the  honey- 
comb lost  thair  senses,  and  were  seized  with  sickness  and 
giddiness.  Those  who  had  taken  much,  felt  as  if  they  had 
been  intoxicated;  those  who  had  had  more,  like  mad  or  dying 
persons.  In  this  state,  they  laid  down  upon  the  ground: 

*  Rhorloraccse.  t  B.  C.  401. 

\.  The  ancient  name  of  Trebizond. 
§  Milne's  Botanical  Dictionary. 


GREEN  HONEV .  53 

none  of  them  died,  but  the  next  day  they  recovered  their 
senses,  and  on  the  third  or  fourth,  they  were  able  to  stand.* 

MRS.  F. 

I  have  seen  people  suffer  very  severely  from  eating  honey 
in  this  country.  It  is  a  singular  fact  in  the  geographical 
distribution  of  insects,  that  the  honey  and  wax  of  Europe, 
Asia,  and  Africa  are  all  prepared  by  bees  of  the  same  genus 
with  our  common  hive  bee;|  while  in  America  the  genus 
Jlpis  is  no  where  indigenous,  but  is  replaced  by  two  other 
genera,^:  and  in  New  Holland,  by  one  still  more  different.§ 


The  other  day,  I  had  a  present  made  me  of  some  green 
honey,  which  is  much  esteemed  for  its  perfume,  as  well  as 
for  its  other  qualities;  and  is,  I  am  told,  collected  by  the  bees 
of  Madagascar  on  the  mountains,  from  the  heath  which  grows, 
in  that  country,  to  an  enormous  size. 

MRS.  F. 

In  Ireland,  the  honey  collected  from  the  mountain  heath  is 
also  highly  esteemed ;  but  the  Narbonne  honey  is  said  to 
derive  its  peculiar  taste  from  the  quantity  of  rosemary  which 
grows  in  the  neighborhood. 

FREDERICK. 

The  ancients  used,  sometimes,  to  put  dead  bodies  into 
honey,  in  order  to  preserve  them  from  putrefaction. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  according  to  Statius,  the  body  of  Alexander  the 
Great  was  so  deposited.  Honey  was  also  poured  upon  the 
Tyrian  purple,  to  keep  it  fresh;  and  some,  that  had  been  thus 
preserved  unimpaired  for  200  years,  was  found  at  Susa  by 
Alexander  the  Great. 

*  Anabasis,  b.  iv.  chap.  viii.  t  Apis. 

J  Melipona  and  Trigona. 
§  Lyell's  Geology,  vol.  ii.  p.  114. 
5* 


54  THE  UPHOLSTERER  BEE. 

MRS.  C. 

I  have  been  told,  by  an  eminent  botanist,*  that  the  best 
mode  of  conveying  grafts  of  trees,  cuttings  of  vines,  &c.  to  a 
distance,  is  to  place  them  in  a  tin  case  or  cylinder  filled  with 
honey.  The  honey  hermetically  excludes  the  air,  and  cut- 
tings so  preserved,  will  vegetate  many  months  after  they 
have  been  packed. 

MRS.  F. 

Wax  is  still  employed,  in  the  East,  to  cover  fish  which 
they  wish  to  transport  to  a  distance;  and  apples  are  thus  sent 
from  South  to  North  Russia.f 

MARY. 

Look,  what  a  curious  leaf  this  is  !  It  appears  to  have  little 
round  pieces  cut  out  of  it  with  a  pair  of  scissors. 

MRS.  c. 

It  is  the  work  of  the  little  Upholsterer  Bee,:j:  a  busy  in- 
mate of  my  garden.  The  leaves  of  the  China  roses  seem 
peculiarly  its  favorite;  but  I  have  found  other  serrated  leaves, 
besides  those  of  the  roses,  cut  in  the  same  way.  There  is 
an  interesting  description  of  the  manner  in  which  it  pursues 
its  occupation  in  the  u  Library  of  Entertaining  Knowledge;"^ 
but  though  so  many  of  the  leaves  in  my  garden  are  thus  cut, 
I  have  never  been  able  to  see  the  little  animal  at  work,  nor 
have  I  ever  discovered  one  of  its  nests. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  very  wonderful  that  it  should  cut  them  so  exactly! 

MRS.  c. 

"The  little  rose-leaf  cutter,  pursuing  her  work  with  the 
nicest  mathematical  art — using  no  artificial  instruments  o 

*  Professor  Gussone. 

t  Beekman's  History  of  Inventions,  vol.  ii.  p.  51. 

|  Megachile  centuncularis  (Latreille). 

f  Insect  Architecture. 


ACCOUNT  OF  HUBER.  55 

form  her  ovals  and  her  circles,  knowing  that  the  elastic 
property  of  the  leaves  will  retain  them  in  their  position — 
making  her  nest  of  equal  strength  throughout  by  the  most 
rational  adjustment  of  each  distinct  part— demands  from  us 
something  more  than  mere  wonder;  for  such  an  exercise  of 
instinctive  ingenuity  at  once  directs  our  admiration  to  the 
Great  Contriver,  who  has  so  admirably  proportioned  her 
knowledge  to  her  necessities."*  One  year  a  Mason  Beef 
made  its  nest  in  the  lock  of  the  garden  door,  and  filled  all 
the  wards  with  her  cells.  I  am  very  partial  to  bees,  and 
have  purchased  some  of  the  newly-invented  hives,  by  means 
of  which  the  honey  may  be  taken  without  destroying  the 
bees.  By  opening  a  valve  in  the  top  of  the  hive,  a  current  of 
air  is  admitted,  which  causes  the  bees  immediately  to  forsake 
the  hive,  and  the  honey  can  be  taken  without  their  suffering 
any  injury. 

MRS.  F. 

These  hives  must  be,  indeed,  a  source  of  great  pleasure  to 
every  benevolent  naturalist,  for  it  seems  a  cruel  fate  to  await 
these  poor  little  industrious  creatures  at  the  close  of  their 
successful  labors;  and  so  impossible  have  I  found  it  to  recon- 
cile their  destruction  to  my  feelings,  that  I  have  never  kept 
bees  myself,  though  the  writings  of  Huber  have  so  much 
interested  me  in  their  economy,  that  I  should  have  liked  to 
have  watched  them  more  closely. 

ESTHER. 

Was  not  Huber  blind,  mamma"? 


Yes,  from  an  early  age.  Huber  is  a  beautiful  example  of 
cheerfulness  and  resignation  under  the  most  afflicting  trials ; 
and  the  patience  and  sagacity  with  which,  under  such  appa- 
rently invincible  obstacles,  he  pursued  the  study  of  nature,  is 
a  fine  lesson  to  us  how  perseverance  and  intelligence  may 

*  Insect  Architecture,  p.  63. 
t  Megaclule  rauraria. 


56  ACCOUNT  OF  HUBER, 

arrive  at  the  most  brilliant  results,  in  spite  of  every  physical 
disadvantage. 

FREDERICK. 

« 

Pray,  aunt,  tell  us  more  about  Huber. 

MRS.  F. 

Huber  was  a  native  of  Geneva,  and  early  began  to  culti- 
vate his  taste  for  literature  and  science;  thus  laying  up  a  store 
of  ideas  and  impressions  for  the  pilgrimage  of  darkness  he 
was  called  upon  later  to  endure.  At  fifteen,  his  sight  began 
to  fail,  and  the  oculists  pronounced  the  probability  of  ap- 
proaching blindness.  Mademoiselle  Lullin  and  Huber  were 
mutually  attached  to  each  other  from  the  age  of  seventeen; 
and,  determined  not  to  abandon  her  friend  in  his  misfortunes, 
this  heroic  young  lady  resolved  to  marry  him  as  soon  as  she 
should  attain  her  majority.*  Her  married  life  realised  the 
promise  of  her  early  devotion ;  and  Madame  Huber,  during 
the  forty  years  of  happiness  they  were  permitted  to  enjoy, 
was  his  secretary,  his  companion,  the  partner  of  his  studies 
and  of  his  pursuits.  Indeed,  such  was  her  unwearied  atten- 
tion, so  many  ways  did  she  find  to  gladden  his  darkened 
existence,  that,  as  he  feelingly  observed  in  his  declining 
years—"  While  she  lived,  I  never  was  conscious  of  the  mis- 
fortune of  being  blind."  f  We  have  seen  the  blind  illustrious 
as  poets  and  musicians,  as  philosophers  and  mathematicians;^: 
but  it  was  reserved  to  Huber  first  to  distinguish  himself  in 
the  sciences  of  observation,  and  upon  objects  so  minute  as  to 
be  perceived  with  difficulty  by  even  the  most  clear-sighted 
observers.  The  works  of  Reaumur  and  Bonnet§  first  directed 
his  curiosity  to  the  study  of  bees,  and  the  desire  of  verifying 
some  of  the  facts  in  their  history,  led  him  to  a  series  of  ob- 
servations on  their  economy. 

*  Then  fixed  at  twenty-five. 

•j-  During  the  war,  Madame  Huber  used  to  put  her  husband  in  pos- 
session of  the  movements  of  the  armies  by  arranging  squadrons  of 
pins  on  a  map,  so  as  to  represent  the  different  bodies  of  troops. 

J  Homer,  Milton,  Salinas  (Professor  of  music  at  the  University  of 
Salamanca),  Saunderson,  Euler,  &c. 

§  With  whom  he  was  personally  acquainted. 


THE  BLIND   NATURALIST.  57 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  aunt,  how  could  he  make  any  observations  when 
blind1? 

MRS.  F. 

By  employing1  the  eyes  of  others.  He  had,  then,  an  intel- 
ligent and  devoted  servant,  Frangois  Burnens,  whom  he 
trained  to  the  task;  and  such  was  the  enthusiasm  that  Huber 
inspired  in  those  around  him,  that  Burnens  would  brave  the 
fury  of  a  whole  hive,  or  seize  a  wasps'  nest  in  spite  of  the 
stings  of  the  horde  of  wasps  who  defended  it,  in  order  to 
arrive  at  some  fact  which  his  master  was  desirous  of  ascer- 
taining. Huber's  wife,  and  subsequently  his  son,  assisted 
him  also  by  their  observations ;  and,  by  attentively  listening 
to  their  recitals,  Huber  was  enabled  to  form  so  clear  an 
image  of  what  they  described,  that,  as  he  once  gaily  observed 
to  Professor  De  Candolle — "  I  am  much  more  sure  than  you 
of  what  I  relate,  for  you  publish  what  your  eyes  alone  have 
seen,  whereas  I  take  the  medium  between  several  witnesses;" 
a  plausible  mode  of  reasoning,  perhaps,  but  happy  was  it  for 
him  that  religious  resignation  had  taught  him  thus  to  view 
his  infirmity. 

ESTHER. 

What  were  Huber's  principal  discoveries] 

MRS.  F. 

He  determined  the  origin  of  the  wax,  and  of  the  propolis; 
he  discovered  how  the  bees  prepared  the  former  for  their 
cells;  he  assigned  the  part  which  each  class  of  bees  takes  in 
the  construction  of  the  hive;  he  described  the  battles  between 
the  queen  bees ;  studied  the  origin  of  the  swarms,  and  first 
gave  a  detailed  history  of  these  flying  colonies ;  he  proved 
the  use  of  the  antennae  in  enabling  the  bees  to  distinguish 
each  other;  he  determined  the  influence  of  the  size  of  the  cell 
upon  the  size  of  the  insect  which  issues  from  it;  and  showed 
the  ravages  committed  among  the  hives  by  the  Death's-head 
Moth  {Sphinx  atropos}.  He  also  made  many  curious  researches 
upon  the  respiration  of  bees,  from  which  he  discovered  that 
these  insects,  by  a  peculiar  movement  of  their  wings,  agitate 


58  HIS  DEATH. 

the  air  so  as  to  renew  its  vital  properties  and  replenish  the 
oxygen  gas,  which  they  consume  like  other  animals.  In 
short,  so  profound  were  his  observations,  and  so  just  his  con- 
clusions, that  since  his  death  nothing  material  has  been  added 
to  their  history,  and  naturalists  blessed  with  the  power  of 
vision  have  had  no  important  observations  to  join  to  those  of 
their  blind  but  persevering  colleague. 

HENRIETTA. 

When  did  Huber  die? 


In  December,  1831,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one,  in  the  pos- 
session of  all  his  faculties,  cheerful  and  resigned  to  the  last. 
On  the  20th  of  that  month  he  wrote  to  a  friend — "  Resigna- 
tion and  serenity  are  blessings  which  have  not  been  refused 
to  me."  Two  days  afterwards,  he  expired  without  pain  in 
the  arms  of  his  daughter.  Such  was  Huber:  religious,  wise, 
and  good ;  amiable  and  animated  in  conversation ;  delighting 
in  the  society  of  young  persons;  firmly  attached  to  his  friends, 
whose  kindness  and  affection  offered  him  a  compensation  to 
his  misfortune  which  he  had  the  good  sense  to  enjoy  and  to 
appreciate.  He  never  was  the  first  to  speak  of  his  calamity; 
he  never  complained,  for  he  considered  resignation  and  cheer- 
fulness as  his  first  duties.  The  sagacity  of  his  researches 
places  him  in  the  highest  rank  among  naturalists;  and  though 
he  confined  himself  to  the  special  observation  of  one  insect, 
yet  his  brilliant  imagination  would  often  indulge  itself  in 
general  ideas,  and  he  loved  to  admire  the  Great  Author  of 
Nature  in  the  harmony  of  His  works.  In  short,  in  whatever 
point  of  view  we  consider  the  character  of  this  amiable  man, 
he  is  highly  deserving  our  admiration.  His  example  may 
teach  us  to  turn  every  dispensation  of  Providence  to  our  good, 
and  shows  us  how,  by  perseverance  and  patience  in  well 
doing,  we  may  attain  the  most  brilliant  results,  under  obsta- 
cles the  most  discouraging,  and  calamities  the  most  depress- 
ing.* It  shows  us  how,  even  though  deprived  of  the  most 

*  The  discovery  by  Captain  Hall  of  the  stingless  bees  at  Tampico 
excited  his  interest,  and  nothing  could  exceed  his  joy  at  a  friend 


CHARACTER  OP  HUBER.  59 

valuable  of  our  senses,  what  resources  we  have  still  within 
ourselves,  and  leads  us  to  bestow  more  attention  upon  the 
cultivation  of  those  faculties  which  are  left  to  us,  so  as  to 
render  them  the  more  efficient  by  the  greater  call  upon  them 
for  exertion.* 

MRS.  c. 

I  must  join  my  thanks,  Mrs.  Fortescue,  to  those  of  your 
young  people  for  this  account  of  Huber,  whose  character  I 
never  before  was  sufficiently  acquainted  with.  Milton's 
touching;  lines  upon  his  blindness  must  be  so  familiar  to  you 
all,  that  we  will  ask  Esther  to  repeat  them.f 

Esther  recited  them  with  much  taste  and  feeling. 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  not  yet  to  forsake  our  favorite  bees,  look  what  num- 
bers of  them  there  are  on  that  Coriopsis. 

MRS.  c. 

Yes:  do  not  you  know  that  all  the  Composite  (or  Composite 
flowers)  are  particular  favorites  of  insects?^:  The  Dahlias, 
when  in  bloom,  are  always  covered  with  insects,  and  espe- 
cially with  bees,  which  you  often  see  upon  the  flower,  either 
so  laden  or  so  stupified  as  to  be  almost  unable  to  move. 

HENRIETTA. 

Pray,  how  do  you  pronounce  the  name  of  that  flower! 

MRS.  c. 
Usage  admits  of  our  saying  Dalia;  but,  independent  of  that 

procuring  him  a  hive  of  them.  This  was  his  last  labor  in  behalf  of 
his  old  friends,  to  whom  he  had  directed  the  researches  of  his  life, 
and  to  whom  he  owed  his  celebrity,  and,  in  a  great  measure,  his 
happiness.  The  above  account  is  mostly  taken  from  De  Candolle's 
"  Notice'*  upon  the  life  and  writings  of  Huber. 

*  The  memory,  one  of  the  highest  faculties  of  the  mind,  is  always 
most  powerful  in  blind  persons. 

t  '  *  With  the  year 

Seasons  return;  but  not  to  me  returns 

Day,  or  the  sweet  approach  of  even  or  morn,"  &c. 

\  Sir  J.  Smith. 


60  CAMELLIA  JAPONICA. 

pronunciation  confusing  these  plants  with  the  papilionaceous 
genus  Dalea,  it  also  is  radically  wrong,  for  the  flower  is 
named  after  Andrew  Dahl,  a  Swedish  botanist,  who  first 
brought  it  from  Mexico,  and  consequently  it  should  be  called 
Dahlia  after  him. 

FREDERICK. 

Jlrbutus,  too,  is  generally  pronounced  wrong;  for,  according 
to  Virgil,*  it  should  have  the  accent  on  the  first  syllable,  the 
u  of  the  second  syllable  being  short. 

MRS.  C. 

In  the  same  manner,  Camellia  should  have  both  /'s  pro- 
nounced; the  planets  being  so  called,  after  Joseph  Kamel, 
a  Jesuit,  whose  name  is  usually  spelt  Camellus. 

ESTHER. 

Some  one  was  telling  me,  the  other  day,  that  Camellias 
are  used  by  the  Chinese  for  flavoring  their  tea. 


Camellia  Sesanqua. 

i 

MRS.  C. 

So  I  have  understood:  the  leaves  of  Camellia  Japonica  and 
Sesanqua  are  often  employed  in  China  and  Japan  instead  of 
those  of  the  true  tea;  and  many  of  the  different  species  of  the 
genus  Thea  are  used,  almost  indifferently  the  one  for  the 
other,  by  the  inhabitants  of  China,  Japan,  and  Cochin-China. 

ESTHER. 

Are  the  Camellias,  then,  a  species  of  tea? 
*  Eclogues,  iii.  82.  and  vii.  46. 


TEA  OF  THE  CALMUCS.  61 


Camellia  Japonica. 
MRS.  C. 

Yes:  according  to  De  Candolle,  they  all  form  one  order, 
Camellias,*  and  being  so  nearly  allied,  they  possess,  though 
in  different  degrees,  the  same  properties;  but  the  peculiar 
flavor  of  some  of  the  kinds  of  tea  is  imparted  to  them  by  the 
tea  leaves  being  placed  in  alternate  layers  with  the  flowers 
of  either  Camellia  sesanqua  or  of  Oleafragrans^  a  plant  which 
you  will  see  growing  in  my  hot-house.  With  the  preparation 
of  tea  as  we  receive  it  here,  you  all,  doubtless,  are  acquainted; 
but  you  probably  are  not  aware  how  the  Calmucs  prepare 
theirs.  "  It  is  imported  from  China  to  Siberia,  and  consists 
of  the  coarse  leaves  and  stalks  of  the  plant,  which  are  formed 
into  cakes  sixteen  inches  long,  eight  inches  broad,  and  more 
than  an  inch  thick.  A  portion  of  this  is  cut  off  with  a  knife, 
and  boiled  with  butter  and  fat  from  the  tails  of  their  sheep;  a 
little  salt  is  added,  and  sometimes  milk.  Before  these  last 
ingredients  are  put  into  the  kettle  the  settlement  is  taken  out 
with  a  bag  and  an  iron  hook  (a  good  deal  like  a  fish  hook,) 
and  these  leaves  are  added  on  the  next  occasion  to  the  fresh 
tea.  When  all  is  ready,  the  tea  is  ladled  out  of  the  kettle 
with  a  wooden  spoon,  and  served  in  the  common  wooden 
bowls  or  cups  which  the  Calmucs  use  to  drink  out  of.:j: 

*  Camellia  ihea  (Bohea  tea,)  Camellia  viridis  (green  tea.) 
t  De  Candolle. 

%  Zwick  and  Schill's  Journey  to  Calmuc  Tartary,  p.  99. 
6 


62  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  CALMUCS. 

MARY. 

In  what  part  of  Asia  do  the  Calmucs  live"? 

MRS.  F. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  vast  plains,  or  steppes,  which  extend 
northward  from  the  Black  Sea  and  Mount  Caucasus,  on  both 
sides  of  the  Volga,  are  known  under  the  name  of  Calmucs. 
They  belong  to  the  Mongolian  race,  are  divided  into  five 
hordes  (in  the  Mogul  language  orrfa,)  each  governed  by  its 
own  khan  or  chief.  Their  wealth  consists  in  their  camels, 
horses,  oxen,  sheep  and  goats;  these  supply  all  their  wants, 
or  afford  them  the  means  of  satisfying  them.  They  live  in 
tents;  20,000  tents  or  families  of  Calmucs  inhabiting  the 
government  of  Astrachan.  In  the  winter  they  drive  their 
herds  from  the  steppes  into  regions  better  furnished  with 
water. 

ESTHER. 

What  dreary  places  these  steppes  must  be! 

MRS.  F. 

So,  indeed,  they  are.  The  steppes  of  Asia  extend  over 
more  than  2000  leagues,  and  are  the  most  vast  and  elevated 
in  the  world.  Those  in  the  government  of  Astrachan  are 
among  the  most  desert  parts  of  the  Russian  empire.  The  soil 
consists  of  a  yellow  clay,  without  stones,  and  abundantly  im- 
pregnated with  various  salts.  Vegetation  is  extremely  scanty, 
consisting  chiefly  of  wormwood,  interspersed  with  tufts  of 
grass,  which  never  entirely  cover  the  ground,  or  form  a  uni- 
form turf,  the  yellow  clay  being  seen  between.  Here  and 
there  are  more  fertile  spots,  covered  with  saline  plants,  or 
adorned  with  the  brilliant  flowers  of  the  Iris  and  the  Tulip. 

ESTHER. 

Is  the  heat  very  great  there? 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  southerly  steppes  the  thermometer  often  remains, 
for  weeks  together,  at  30  degrees  of  Reaumur,*  and  not  a 

*  See  page  210. 


STEPPES  OF  ASIA.  63 

single  refreshing  cloud  appears  in  the  heavens;  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  cold  in  winter  is  intense,  the  thermometer 
being  then  as  many  degrees  below  the  freezing  point;  and 
this  is  felt  the  more  because  no  mountains  intervene  to  keep 
off  the  cold  air  from  the  east,  which  comes  from  the  lofty,  ice- 
covered  Mongolia  in  an  irresistible  stream. 

ESTHER. 

Do  many  animals  inhabit  these  deserts'? 

MRS.  F. 

Wild  horses,  antelopes,  foxes,  and  wolves  are  its  chief  oc- 
cupants. Serpents  and  lizards  are  very  common,  and  so  is 
the  locust,  which  devastates  whole  provinces.  Scorpions  are 
local,  but  the  tarantula,  and  the  still  more  poisonous  scorpion 
spider,  which  the  Calmucs  call  the  black  widow,  are  every 
where  to  be  met  with,  and  to  be  dreaded. 

MARY. 
Are  there  steppes  in  any  other  part  of  the  world  ? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  in  all;  and  if  you  will  remind  me,  another  time,  I 
will  give  you  some  account  of  them.  At  present,  we  must 
direct  our  attention  to  the  flowers  around  us;  and  let  us  follow 
Mrs,  Clifford  into  the  hot-house. 


64 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  HOT-HOUSE. 

BAUHINIA.  — IPOMCEA  COCCINEA  AND  QUAMOCLIT. —  HIBISCUS    ROSA- 

SINENSIS.  —  HIBISCUS   ESCULENTUS. MALVACEJE.  —  COTTON.  — 

ILLICIUM  FLORIDANUM  AND  ANISATUM. — ANISETTE. — MARASCHINO. 
MERISES. MAY  DUKE. BIGARREAU. KIRSCHENWASSER. WAL- 
NUTS. —  VANILLA.  —  VIOLET  SHERBET.  —  BERTOLA's  LINES  TO 
THE  VIOLET. —  ROSE  APPLE.  —  INDIAN  RUBBER. —  BANYAN  TREE. 

—  MILTON,    SOUTHEY,    AND   MOORfi's    LINES. —  DRAGON    TREE    OF 

OROTAVA.  BAOBAB.  —  COCOA     NUT.  —  MONK1ES    TRAINED     TO 

FETCH  THE  FRUIT.  — SEYCHELLES  ISLAND  COCOA  NUT.  — ALBUMEN. 

—  ORANGE  TREES  AT  SORRENTO. 


"  How  exquisitely  sweet 
This  rich  display  of  flowers! 
This  airy  wild  of  fragrance, 
So  lovely  to  the  eye, 
And  to  the  sense  so  sweet!" 


HENRIETTA. 

WHAT  a  curious  saddle-shaped  leaf  this  creeper  has  ! 

MRS.  CLIFFORD. 

Yes;  it  is  divided  into  two  singular,  oval  lobes.  The  plant 
is  the  Bauhinia,  a  climber  of  South  America,  in  the  woods  of 
which,  it  twines  round  the  highest  trees,  and  the  monkies 
use  it  for  ladders.  On  the  borders  of  the  Orinoco,  its  leafless 
branches  are  often  forty  feet  long.  Sometimes  they  fall 
perpendicularly  from  the  elevated  top  of  the  Mahogany;*  at 
others,  they  stretch  themselves  diagonally  from  one  tree  to 
another,  like  the  ropes  of  a  ship,  and  the  tiger-cats  run  up 

*  Stoietenia  Mahogani  De  Candolle. 


THE  HIBISCUS.  65 

and  down  them  with  wonderful  agility.*  Here,  too, '  is 
another  beautiful  creeper,  the  delicate  pinnated  leaves  of 
which,  give  it  the  most  feather-like  appearance,  and  its  bril- 
liant crimson  flowers  far  surpass  its  kindred  and  more  hardy 
species,  the  fpomcea  coccinea,  a  common  garden  annual.  This 
is  the  Ipomcea  quamoclit,  and  its  fleshy  root  is  converted  by 
the  Indians  into  a  kind  of  snuff,  j 

MRS.  F. 
Look  at  this  beautiful  scarlet  Hibiscus. 

MRS.  c. 

That  is  Hibiscus  rosa  sinensis,  or  daily  Rose;  the  Chinese 
employ  it  to  blacken  their  hair  and  eyebrows,  and  also  the 
leather  of  their  shoes. ^  For  the  latter  purpose,  the  Malays 
at  Singapore  (in  the  employ  of  the  Europeans)  also  use  it,  by 
rubbing  the  shoes  with  the  petals  of  the  flower,  which  con- 
tain a  quantity  of  purplish  black  astringent  juice.  It  pos- 
sesses, certainly,  the  advantage  over  our  blacking,  of  not 
coming  off,  and  thus  preventing  the  white  dresses  of  the 
Easterns  from  being  sullied  by  the  shoes.  The  Europeans 
have  given  it,  in  consequence,  the  name  of  shoe-flower. 
Another  species  of  Hibiscus  (H.  esculentus,}  the  Okro  plant, 
is  much  eaten  in  tropical  countries;  and  in  Africa,  the  flowers 
of  many  species  of  this  beautiful  tribe  are  used  by  the  women 
to  decorate  their  hair.§ 

ESTHER. 

They  are  of  the  family  of  Malvaceae,  are  they  not1? 

MRS.  c. 

Yes;  and  to  the  same  family  the  Cotton  tree  belongs.  The 
seeds  of  many  genera  of  this  family  are  surrounded  by  woolly 
or  silky  filaments;  those  of  the  cotton,  when  viewed  with  a 
microscope,  are  covered  with  small  teeth  or  notches,  which 

*  Humboldt,  Tableaux  de  la  Nature, 
t  De  Candolle.  \  Ibid. 

§  Stories  of  Strange  Lands,  by  Mrs.  R.  Lee. 
6* 


66  ILLICIUM  FLORIDANUM. 

render  them  so  easy  to  weave,  and  which  explains  how  the 
textures  made  from  them  irritate  or  scratch  the  skin. 

HENRIETTA. 

That  is  the  reason,  I  suppose,  that  so  many  persons  do  not 
like  wearing  calico,  and  that  it  is  never  used  for  dressing 
wounds'? 

MRS.  F. 

Precisely  so.  In  the  vegetable,  as  well  as  in  the  animal 
kingdom,  we  find  that  those  hairs  which,  when  seen  by  the 
microscope,  appeared  to  be  toothed,  are  alone  capable  of  felt- 
ing.* Here  is  the  species  which  furnishes  the  Nankeen 
cotton;  \  and  this  is  the  common  species. £ 

ESTHER. 

Pray,  Mrs.  Clifford,  what  is  this  pretty  star-shaped  crimson 
flower? 

MRS.  c. 

Illicium  floridanum.  Another  species  of  the  same  genus, 
Illicium  anisatum,  is  a  plant  much  used  by  the  Chinese.  Its 
smell  is  sweet  and  aromatic;  its  taste  a  little  bitter.  They 
employ  it  to  burn  in  their  temples,  and  the  Europeans  use  it 
to  flavor  several  of  their  liqueurs  —  among  others  the  cele- 
brated Anisette  de  Bordeaux.  § 

HENRIETTA. 

And  what  is  Maraschino  flavored  with? 

MRS.  F. 

"With  a  small  black  cherry,  which  is  generally  denominated 
in  England,  among  the  gardeners,  the  Guisnes  cherry,  they 
having  been  probably  imported  from  thence.  By  the  country 
people,  they  are  often  termed  merries,  which  last  name  is  a 
corruption  of  their  French  appellation,  merises. 

*  De  Candolle.  t  Gossipium  religiosum. 

$  G.  herbaceum.  §  De  Candolle. 


THE  GUISNES  CHERRY.  67 

MRS.  C. 

In  the  same  manner  that  May  duke  is  derived  from  the  Pays 
de  Mcdoc,  a  part  of  France  wheje  that  variety  of  cherry 
abounds;  and  bigarroo  is  a  corruption  of  bigarreau,  an  epithet 
given  to  the  cherry,  from  its  beautiful  red-and-white  mottled 
appearance  —  but,  I  am  interrupting  you,  Mrs.  Fortescue. 

MRS.  F. 

This  Guisnes  cherry,  or  merise,  grows  in  Dalmatia,  where 
it  is  called  marasca,*  whence  the  liqueur  derives  its  name. 
It  is  chiefly  manufactured  at  the  little  town  of  Zara,  so  cele- 
brated in  modern  history,  f  from  which  place  it  is  sent  to 
Venice  and  Trieste,  and  thence  to  every  part  of  the  world. 
But  this  is  not  the  only  liqueur  made  from  cherries;  the  Ger- 
man kirschenwasser  (the  word  only  meaning  cherry-water)  is 
distilled  from  the  cherry.^: 

ESTHER. 

Where  is  it  made1? 

MRS.  F. 

The  best  is  manufactured  in  the  Black  Forest,  so  celebrated 
as  the  scene  of  many  a  German  legend.  In  all  that  part  of 
Germany,  cherries  are  most  abundant,  and  are  sold  at  the 
most  trifling  price.  With  the  Germans,  stewed  cherries  are 
a  favorite  dish,  and  they  eat  them  with  their  roasted  meat. 

ESTHER. 

Are  not  walnuts,  also,  very  common  in  Germany! 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  although  the  tree  is  not  indigenous  to  Europe,  but  is 
supposed  to  have  been  introduced  from  Persia  and  the  borders 

*  An  abbreviation  of  amarasca,  from  its  bitter  flavor, 
t  For  its  siege,  in  1201,  by  tbe  crusading  princes,  and 

"  blind  old  Dandalo! 

Th'  octogenarian  chief,  Byzantium's  conquering  foe." 
%  Cerasis  avium. 


68  THE  VANILLA.  SHERBET. 

of  the  Caspian  Sea.*     The  Germans  cultivate  them  chiefly 
for  the  oil  which  their  nuts  afford. 

.MRS.  c. 

With  us  they  flourish  mostly  in  Surrey,  which  county 
almost  entirely  supplies  the  London  market  with  this  fruit. 
But  here  is  also  a  plant,  the  perfume  of  which  you  are  well 
acquainted  with,  the  Vanilla  aromatica,  a  creeping  parasitical 
plant,  which  fixes  its  roots  in  the  trunks  of  trees  in  tropical 
climates.  You  see,  I  keep  mine  in  cocoa-nut  shells  filled 
with  moss,  which  answers  the  same  purpose.  It  does  not 
produce  fruit  in  this  cpuntry;  but  I  have  in  the  house  one  of 
its  long,  cylindrical,  fleshy  pods,  which  is  so  much  valued 
for  its  delicate  and  delicious  aroma,  and  with  which  liqueurs, 
ices,  &c.,  are  so  often  flavored. 


Vanilla  Aromatica. 
ESTHER. 

I  have  read  that  the  sherbet  of  the  Turks  is  prepared  from 
the  flowers  of  the  violet,  f 

MRS.  C. 

Yes;  that  which  is  most  esteemed,  and  which  is  drunk  by 
the  Grand  Seignor  himself,  is  made  of  violets  and  sugar. 

*  Voyage  dans  1 'Empire  de  Flore. 

t  Hasselquist  and  Tavernier.— "  The  violet  sherbets  were  hastily 
handed  round." — MOORE. 


LINES  BY  AN  ITALIAN  POET.  69 

MRS.  F. 

Among  the  numerous  lines  written  upon  this  flower,  which 
really  rivals  the  rose  in  the  admiration  with  which  it  has  in- 
spired poets,  is  a  pretty  sonnet  of  the  Italian  poet  Bertola, 
which  Esther  will  repeat  to  you,  Mrs.  Clifford;  but,  I  fear 
we  must  translate  it  for  the^rest  of  our  party,  except  for  Hen- 
rietta, who  understands  Italian. 

Esther  repeated  the  following  verses  to 

LA  VIOLA  MAMMOLA. 

"  O  bella  mammola  tutta  modesta, 
II  prima  zefiro  d*  April  ti  desta: 
Vivi  rinchiusa,  ma  in  lontananza 
La  tua  ti  accusa  dolce  fragranza: 
O  bella  mammola,  mammola  bella, 
Sii  tu  1'imagine  d'ogni  donzella! 

"  Chi  brama  coglierti,  se  avanza  il  piede, 
Gia  sta  per  premerti,  ne  ancor  ti  vede: 
Pure  e  gentili  le  tue  fogliette 
Fra  P  erbe  vili  giaccion  neglette. 
O  bella,  &c. 

"  Quando  col  crescere  di  primavera, 
Dei  fior  piu  nobile  cresce  la  schiera, 
Ch'  apron  piu  vaga  piu  altera  foglia: 
Ti  stai  tu  paga  che  niun  ti  coglia. 
O  bella,  he. 

"  Madre,  consolati  se  la  tua  figlia 
A  bella  mammola  tutta  somiglia:          .    , 
Ne  mai  lagnarti  se  d'arti  e  senza; 
Che  far  dell'  arti  dov'  e  innocenza?" 

MRS.  C. 
Thank  you,  Esther.     I  never  heard  them  before. 

MRS.  B. 

Here  is  a  tropical  plant,  which  I  have  seen  in  full  fruit  in 
Italy,  where  it  is  also  used  for  flavoring  the  sorbetti  (or 
sherbet,)  the  Eugenia  Jambos,  or  Rose  apple,  of  the  West 


70  THE  BANYAN  TREE. 

Indies.  My  tree  produces  fruit  constantly.  Taste  it:  the 
flavor,  as  well  as  the  smell,  precisely  resembles  the  otto  of 
roses;  and  the  tree,  laden  with  its  round  yellow  fruit,  has  a 
very  pretty  effect;  but  the  dryness  of  the  fruit  renders  it  unfit 
for  eating,  though  it  is  sometimes  used  to  feed  pigs,  who  de- 
vour it  greedily.  This,  too,  is  a  tree  which  will  be  interest- 
ing to  you,  as  it  is  one  of  those  which  afford  the  Indian 
rubber. 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  there  more  than  one  tree  which  produces  it? 


Yes,  several.  They  are  mostly  included  in  the  families 
Euphorbiaceae,  Urticesc,  Jlpocyneac,  and  Campanulaceae.*  This 
is  the  Ficus  elasticus;  prick  either  the  bark  or  the  leaf,  and  you 
will  see  a  white,  glutinous  liquid  issue  from  it,  which  hardens 
by  exposure  to  the  air.  But  here  is  another  species  of  Ficus, 
which  you  know  well  by  name,  but  of  which  this  is  but 
a  miniature  representation;  the  celebrated  Banyan  treef  of  the 
East  Indies. 


Banyan  Tree. 
ESTHER. 

I  remember  Milton's  description  of  it  very 

*  The  Indian  rubber  of  commerce  comes  from  Hevea  Cahuchu, 
Lobelia  Caoutcha,  Castilloa  elastica,  Ficus  and  Urceola  elastica, 
&c.  (Humboldt,  Voyage  aux  Regions  .ZEquinoctiales,  vol.  vii.  p. 
330.) 

f  Ficus  Indica. 


MILTON  AND  SOUTHEY.  71 

"  The  fig  tree,  not  that  kind  for  fruit  renown'd, 
But  such  as  at  this  clay  to  Indians  known 
In  Malabar  or  Deccan,  spreads  her  arms 
Branching  so  broad  and  long,  that  in  the  ground 
The  bended  twigs  take  root,  and  daughters  grow 
About  the  mother  tree,  a  pillar'd  shade 
High  overarched,  and  echoing  walks  between; 
There  oft  the  Indian  herdsman,  shunning  heat, 
Shelters  in  cool,  and  tends  his  pasturing  herds 
At  loop-holes  cut  through  thickest  shade." 

MRS.  c. 
It  is  given  quite  with  the  pen  of  a  naturalist. 

MRS.  F. 

Southey  also  describes  it  minutely  in  his  "  Curse  of  Ke- 
hama:"  — 

"  'Twas  a  fair  scene  wherein  they  stood, 
A  green  and  sunny  glade  amid  the  wood, 
And  in  the  midst  an  aged  Banian  grew. 
It  was  a  goodly  sight  to  see 
That  venerable  tree; 
For  o'er  the  lawn,  irregularly  spread, 
Fifty  straight  columns  propt  its  lofty  head, 
And  many  a  long  depending  shoot 
Seeking  to  strike  its  root, 
Straight,  like  a  plummet,  grew  towards  the  ground. 

Some  on  the  lower  boughs,  which  crost  their  way, 
Fixing  their  bearded  fibres,  round  and  round, 
With  many  a  ring  and  wild  contortion  wound; 
Some  to  the  passing  winds,  at  times,  with  sway 

Of  gentle  motion  swung; 

Others  of  younger  growth,  unmoved,  were  hung, 
Like  stone-drops  from  the  cavern's  fretted  height. 
Beneath  was  smooth  and  fair  to  sight, 
Nor  weeds  nor  briers  deform'd  the  natural  floor; 
And  through  the  leafy  cope  which  bowered  it  o'er 

Came  gleams  of  chequer'd  light. 
So  like  a  temple  did  it  seem,  that  there 
A  pious  heart's  first  impulse  would  be  prayer." 


72  THE  DRAGON  TREE. 


And,  if  I  do  not  fatigue  you  with  qnotations,  I  should  like 
to  repeat  some  beautiful  lines  of  Moore  to  his  Mother,  in  which 
he  alludes  to  the  Banyan:  — 

They  tell  us  of  an  Indian  tree 

Which,  howsoe'er  the  sun  and  sky 
May  tempt  its  boughs  to  wander  free, 

And  shoot  and  blossom  wide  and  high, 
Far  better  loves  to  bend  its  arms 

Downwards  again  to  that  dear  earth 
From  which  the  life,  that  fills  and  warms 

Its  grateful  being,  first  had  birth. 
'Tis  thus,  though  woo'd  by  flattering  friends, 

And  fed  with  fame  (if  fame  it  be,) 
This  heart,  my  own  dear  mother,  bends, 

With  love's  true  instinct,  back  to  ihee! 

MRS.  F. 
Thank  you;  the  simile  is  beautiful. 

FREDERICK. 

What  is  this  very  tall  plant? 


That  is  the  Dragon  tree  (Dracaena  draco,)  one  of  the  most 
common  of  the  tropical  trees.  Its  beautiful  head  of  green 
leaves  makes  it  appear  to  enjoy  a  perpetual  spring.  Among 
the  people  of  Hawaii  or  Owyhee,  it  is  the  emblem  of  peace.* 
The  tree  attains  such  an  immense  size,  that  fishing  boats  have 
been  made  out  of  its  trunk.  |  Pigs  are  fed  upon  its  fruit;  but, 
if  you  wish  to  read  an  interesting  account  of  this  tree,  I  must 
refer  you  to  Humboldt's  "  Personal  Narrative"  for  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  Dragon  tree  of  Orotava. 

FREDERICK. 

Pray,  where  is  Orotava? 

MRS.  C. 

It  is  one  of  the  islands  of  the  Canaries,  and  on  it  is  a  gi- 
*  Beechey's  Voyage.  t  Bowdich's  "  Madeira." 


TIIK    IIIIACON   TUKK.  73 

gantic  Dragon  tree,  which  appears  to  have  existed  there  for 

ccnliinrs;  lor  tr.idilion  -.isscrls,  !li;il.  il,  w;is  of  the  s.mie  dr,i- 
metei  when  MM!  island  vviis  conquered  in  the  15th  century  as 
it  id  at  present. 


Dragon  Tree. 
E8TIIKK. 

And  what  is  that? 

MK8.  F. 

Sixteen  feet.  Its  height  is  now  from  50  to  CO  foot,  the 
circumference  near  the  root  45  feet;  and  what  renders  it  the 
morn  singular  that  HUH  truo  should  have  attained  so  enor- 
mous a  size  is,  that  it  is  not  indigenous:  the  East  Indies  is 

itH  triM!  country,  ;uul  il.  IH  nowhere  found  on  the  <-(.niiii< ni  .,1 
Africa.  Those,  therefore,  which  are  growing  in  the  Cana- 
ries, Madeira,  and  Porto  Santo,  prove  from  their  age,  that, 
sit  HOIIHJ  very  remote  period,  the  i nlr,il> iUnlH  iniiHt  hiiv<:  had 
intercourse  with  other  people  originally  from  Asia.* 

MRS.  r. 
The  Dracaena,  with  the  Baobab,  are  probably  among  the 

*  Humboldt'n  Voyage,  vol.  i,  p.  252. 


74  ACCOUNT  OF 

oldest  inhabitants  of  our  planet.  I  think  I  see  a  small  plant 
here  of  the  latter,  which  I  must  point  out  to  my  little  party, 
as  it  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  of  the  tropical  trees. 

ESTHER. 

Is  that  the  same  as  the  Monkey  Bread  tree? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes.  It  is  also  called  the  Ethiopian  Sour  Gourd:*  its 
botanical  name  is  Mansonia  digitata. 

ESTHER. 

Where  is  it  a  native  of? 

MRS.  F. 

The  natural  territory  of  the  Baobab  is  that  part  of  Western 
Africa  which  lies  between  the  Senegal  and  the  Gambia;  and 
it  is  to  the  verdant  appearance  given  by  these  trees  that  Cape 
Yerd  owes  its  name.  The  tree  belongs  to  the  natural  order 
of  Malvaceae  (or  the  Mallow  tribe).  Its  flowers  are  about  4 
inches  long  and  6  in  diameter.  Being  of  a  brilliant  white, 
and  pendent  from  long  stalks,  they  form  a  beautiful  contrast 
to  the  dark  green  of  the  leaves.  They  close  at  night;  and  it 
is  the  custom  of  the  Africans  to  assemble  round  the  Baobab 
at  the  approach  of  day,  to  watch  the  opening  of  its  flowers, 
greeting  them  with  the  salutation  of  "  Good  day,  beautiful 
lady!"  The  leaves,  as  the  specific  name  implies,  are  digitate 
or  finger-shaped,  and  are  divided  into  five  lobes:  when  young, 
they  are  employed  by  the  natives  to  flavor  their  kouskous,  and 
for  many  other  culinary  purposes.  This  is  one  of  the  few  Af- 
rican trees  (if  not  the  only  one)  which  loses  all  its  leaves  at 
the  approach  of  the  rainy  season,  when  its  long,  bare,  rude, 
irregular,  hoary  branches  have  a  most  grotesque  effect,  tow- 
ering above  all  the  other  trees  in  the  forest,  the  fruit  still 
pendent  from  it,  in  long,  twisted  stalks,  varying  from  1  to  2 
feet  in  length.  Its  bark  is  of  a  whitish  hue.  The  fruit  is 
about  18  inches  in  circumference,  in  the  form  of  a  double 

*  Kouka  in  the  Soudan,  according  to  Major  Denham. 


THE  BAOBAB  TREE.  75 

cone,  covered  with  a  rind  which  resembles  dark  green  velvet. 
It  is  divided  into  8  or  10  cells,  each  of  which  is  filled  with  a 
buff-colored,  farinaceous,  pulpy  substance,  of  an  acid  and 
agreeable  taste.  In  some  places,  it  forms  a  principal  article 
of  food,  and  the  juice  expressed  from  it  is  used  as  a  cooling 
drink  in  fevers.  The  fruit  is  consequently  an  article  of  com- 
merce, and  is  conveyed  as  far  as  Morocco  and  Egypt. 

MRS.  C. 

Is  the  wood  of  the  Baobab  of  any  usel 

MRS.  F. 

Of  none.  It  is  fibrous  and  soft,  and  is  even  unfit  for  burn- 
ing. The  middle  is  filled  with  a  large  proportion  of  pith, 
the  decay  of  which  occasions  the  great  caverns  so  frequently 
found  in  these  trees.  Within  these  hollow  trunks  are  sus- 
pended the  bodies  of  those  who  are  refused  the  rites  of  burial, 
and,  in  them,  they  become  mummies,  perfectly  dry  and  well 
preserved,  without  any  artificial  preparation.  The  Baobabs 
grow  in  sandy  soils;  and  their  lateral  roots,  though  often 
100  feet  in  length,  would  of  themselves  be  insufficient  to 
enable  the  tree  to  withstand  the  violence  of  the  wind,  had 
not  Providence  given  them  also  a  pivot  root,  formed  by  a 
prolongation  of  the  trunk  in  a  vertical  direction.  Thus  ad- 
mirably defended,  the  Baobab  resists  the  fury  of  the  African 
tornadoes,  and,  undisturbed  by  the  war  of  elements,  remains 
fixed  in  its  position,  the  oldest  organic  monument  of  our 
planet. 

MRS.  C. 

I  think  I  have  understood  that  it  is  not  a  very  lofty  tree! 

MRS.  F. 

No;  its  elevation  is  by  no  means  proportionate  to  its 
breadth.  Adanson  says  they  are  from  10  to  12  feet  high, 
and  77  in  circumference;  their  roots  110  feet  long.  Hum- 
boldt  states  them  to  be  12  feet  high  and  30  feet  in  diameter; 
and  other  travellers  have  assigned  them  even  greater  dimen- 
sions. The  largest,  I  believe,  on  record  is  that  in  the  valley 
of  the  two  Gagnacks. 


76  ACCOUNT  OF 

HENRIETTA. 

Where  is  that,  aunt"? 

MRS.  F. 

Between  St.  Louis  and  Goree.  The  tree,  which  was  104 
feet  in  circumference,  was  situated  a  few  paces  from  the 
village,  and  the  assemblies  of  the  people  were  always  held 
in  the  enormous  cavern  formed  in  its  trunk,  which  cavern 
was  20  feet  high,  and  21  in  diameter.  The  form  presented 
by  the  tree  was  that  of  a  beautiful  arch,  flat  and  elliptical  at 
top,  and  supported  by  a  column  24  feet  high;  for  it  was  at 
this  elevation  that  the  principal  branches  proceeded,  and  ex- 
tended round  the  tree  in  a  horizontal  direction  to  the  distance 
of  50  feet. 


But  with  regard  to  its  age,  how  have  they  made  those  cal- 
culations which  give  it  an  existence  coeval  with  the  Deluge? 

MRS.  F. 

By  means  of  two  trees  which  are  in  the  Isles  de  la  Made- 
leine, and  which  have  their  bark  inscribed  with  Dutch  names, 
bearing  the  date  of  1449.  Supposing  these  characters  to  have 
been  engraved  in  the  infancy  of  the  tree,  and  comparing  them 
with  their  dimensions  when  Adonson  saw  them,  he  endea- 
vored to  form  a  ratio  of  the  progressive  increase  of  the  Bao- 
bab, from  which  he  calculated  that  a  tree  of  30  feet  in  dia- 
meter must  be  5150  years  old,  and  must  consequently  have 
survived  the  Deluge;  but,  when  we  hear  of  such  extraordi- 
nary calculations  as  this;  and  that  of  a  modern  botanist,* 
who  gives  even  a  greater  age  to  the  Deciduous  Cypress, | 
we  must  suspect  there  is  some  great  error  in  the  data  upon 
which  they  have  formed  such  extravagant  conclusions.  £ 

MRS.  c. 
I  am  sure,  Mrs.  Fortescue,  that  we  are  very  much  obliged 

*  M.  Alphonse  De  Candolle. 

t  Taxodiura  distichum.  $  Liudley. 


THE  COCOA-NUT  TREE. 


77 


to  you  for  this  very  interesting  account  of  the  Baobab,  which 
will  much  enhance  the  pleasure  I  have  in  watching  my  pigmy 
specimen.*  Here  is  the  Cocoa-nut  tree  (Cocos  nucifera,} 
which,  in  its  native  country,  attains  70  or  80  feet  in  height. 
It  does  not  begin  to  bear  fruit  until  the  fourth  year,  even  in  a 
damp  and  fertile  soil;  but  in  barren  ground,  not  until  the  tenth 
year  of  its  age. 


Cocoa-nut. 

MRS.  F. 
Does  not  the  Cocoa-nut  prefer  salt  to  fresh  water1? 

MRS.  C. 

Yes;  it  always  grows  best  near  the  sea,  and  when  planted 
inland,  the  cultivators  throw  half  a  bushel  of  salt  in  the  hole 
made  to  receive  the  nut.  It  is  not  a  long-lived  tree,  its  du- 
ration seldom  exceeding  eighty  to  a  hundred  years;  and  it 

*  Tableaux  de  la  Nature.  Humboldt's  Personal  narrative.  Gol- 
berry's  Africa.  Hooker  in  Botanical  Magazine,  vol.  lv.  &e.  &c. 

7* 


78  THE  OURANG-OUTANG. 

only  bears  abundantly  till  the  age  of  thirty,  when  the  crops 
gradually  diminish. 

ESTHER. 

How  many  nuts  will  a  tree  yield  ? 

MRS.  C. 

On  an  average,  about  a  hundred.*  Animals  have  often 
been  trained  to  fetch  down  the  Cocoa-nut  and  other  fruits  for 
their  masters.  The  ourang-outang  has  been  tamed  by  the 
savages  of  Borneo,  and  made  to  climb  lofty  trees  to  bring 
down  the  fruit.  But  he  is  said  to  yield  his  masters  an  un- 
willing obedience,  and  to  be  held  in  subjection  only  by  severe 
discipline.  One  of  the  baboons  of  Sumatra  (Simia  carpolegus} 
appears  to  be  more  docile,  and  is  frequently  trained  by  the 
inhabitants  to  ascend  tieesfor  the  purpose  of  gathering  cocoa- 
nuts,  a  service  in  which  this  animal  is  very  expert.  He  se- 
lects, says  Sir  Stamford  Raffles,  the  ripe  nuts  with  great 
udgment,  and  pulls  no  more  than  he  is  ordered.  The  capu- 
chin and  cacajao  monkeys  are,  according  to  De  Humboldt, 
taught  to  ascend  ti;ees  in  the  same  manner,  and  to  throw 
down  fruit,  on  the  banks  of  the  Lower  Orinoco,  f 


The  Ourang  Outang. 

*  Humboldl's  Personal  Narrative,  vol.  iii. 

t  Hooker  in  Botanical   Magazine,  vol.  liv.,  from  which  this  ac- 
count is  taken. 


COCO  DE  MER.  79 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  this  strange-looking  nut  which  is  lying  down 
here? 

MRS.  C. 

It  is  the  celebrated  Coco  de  mer,  or  Cocoa-nut  of  the  Sey- 
chelles Islands. 

MRS.  F. 

The  nut,  I  conclude,  to  which  so  many  fabulous  origins 
were  assigned;  but  I  am  sure  that  Mrs.  Clifford  will  kindly 
give  us  a  more  detailed  account  of  it. 

MRS.  c. 

With  pleasure.  Until  the  discovery  in  1743  of  the  only 
spot  in  the  world  where  these  nuts  grow,  they  were  solely 
known  from  having  been  found  floating  on  the  surface  of  the 
sea,  in  the  Indian  Ocean,  and  near  the  Maldives,  whence  was 
derived  their  French  name  of  Coco  des  Maldives.  They  have 
also  received  other  appellations,  such  as  Double  Cocoa-nut, 
Coco  de  mer,  Coco  de  Salomon,  and  Nux  Medica.*  The  nut 
being  only  found  in  this  manner  (always  destitute  of  its  husk) 
gave  rise  to  many  fabulous  stories  among  the  Malay  and 
Chinese  sailors;  such  as,  that  it  was  borne  by  a  tree  deep 
under  water,  which  was  similar  to  the  cocoa-nut  tree,  and 
was  visible  in  placid  bays  upon  the  coast  of  Sumatra,  &c., 
but  that  if  they  sought  to  dive  after  the  tree,  it  instantly  dis- 
appeared. The  negro  priests  declared  it  to  grow  near  the 
island  of  Java,  with  its  leaves  and  branches  rising  above  the 
water,  in'which  a  monstrous  bird  or  griffin  had  its  habitation, 
whence  it  used  to  sally  forth  nightly  to  tear  to  pieces  with  its 
beak  elephants,  rhinoceri,  &c.,  whose  flesh  it  carried  to  its 
nest:  furthermore,  they  avouched  that  ships  were  attracted  by 
the  waves  which  surround  this  tree,  and  there  retained,  the 
mariners  falling  a  prey  to  this  savage  bird;  so  that  the  in- 
habitants of  the  Indian  Archipelago  always  carefully  avoid 
that  spot.  W7ith  such  and  many  more  strange  ideas  respect- 

*  Lodoicea  Sechellarum  (Labillardiere  and  Sprengel). 


82  THE  MAKE  ISLANDS. 

cocoa-nuts,  soon  reduced  the  value  of  this  commodity;  and 
now,  probably,  by  the  Indians,  as  well  as  by  the  Europeans, 
it  is  only  sought  as  a  matter  of  curiosity  or  for  domestic 
purposes. 

ESTHER. 

Where  are  the  Seychelles  Islands'? 

MRS.  c. 

The  Seychelles,  or  Mahe  Islands,  as  they  are  sometimes 
called,  lie  to  the  northeast  of  Madagascar.  It  is  in  this 
group  only,  that  the  palm  is  found,  and,  even  among  them, 
in  no  others  than  the  Isle  of  Praslin  and  Curieuse,  and  Round 
Island.  These  are  within  half  a  mile  of  each  other,  moun- 
tainous and  rocky,  and  the  soil  poor.  The  common  cocoa- 
nut  occupies  the  sea-coast,  but  all  other  parts  are,  or  have 
been,  entirely  covered  with  Cocos  de  Mer. 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  it  a  handsome  palm"? 

MRS.  c. 

Yes,  remarkably  so;  its  ordinary  height  is  from  fifty  to 
sixty  feet,  but  it  sometimes  attains  a  hundred,  scarcely  differ- 
ing in  size  to  the  very  top,  where  it  is  crowned  with  a  tuft  of 
from  twelve  to  twenty  leaves,  of  a  bright  yellow  green,  about 
eight  to  ten  feet  long,  and  five  to  six  feet  wide;  but  some 
have  been  measured  as  large  as  twenty  feet.  Twelve  months 
elapse  before  the  fruits  are  fully  ripe,  and  they  have  been 
known  to  hang  three  years  on  the  tree  before  falling  on  the 
ground. 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  like  the  oranges  at  Sorrento,  near  Naples,  which 
hang  three  years  upon  the  trees. 

MRS.  c. 

A  nut  remains  a  year  in  the  ground  before  it  germinates, 
and  a  tree  is  twenty  to  thirty  years  old  before  it  bears  fruit. 


COCOA-NUTS.  83 

A  troe  produces  from  twenty  to  thirty  nuts.  These  nuts  are, 
as  you  see,  about  a  foot  long,  almost  black,  and  of  a  hard 
woody  texture.  A  new  leaf  is  formed  on  the  tree  annually, 
and,  on  falling  away  at  the  end  of  the  year,  it  leaves  a  scar  or 
ring.  From  these  it  is  estimated  that  a  tree  takes  130  years 
to  attain  its  full  development.  The  crown  of  the  trunk,  in 
the  middle  of  the  leaves,  is  eaten,  as  in  that  of  the  true  Cab- 
bage Palm  (Jlreca  oleracea,}  but  is  less  delicate,  and  slightly 
bitter;  it  is  often  preserved  in  vinegar.  The  trunk  is  used 
for  palisades,  &c.;  the  foliage,  to  thatch  the  roofs  of  houses, 
and  even  for  walls.  With  a  hundred  leaves,  a  commodious 
dwelling  may  be  constructed,  including  even  the  partitions, 
doors,  and  windows.  In  the  Isle  of  Praslin,  most  of  the  ca- 
bins and  warehouses  ,are  thus  made.  The  down  which  is 
attached  to  the  young  leaves,  serves  for  filling  mattresses  and 
pillows.  The  ribs  of  the  leaves  and  fibres  of  the  petiole  (or 
leaf-stalk)  are  converted  into  baskets  and  brooms.  The 
young  foliage  affords  an  excellent  material  for  hats;  for  which 
purpose  the  unexpanded  leaves  only,  are  taken,  dried  in  the 
sun,  and  cut  into  thin  longitudinal  stripes,  which  are  then 
plaited,  and  scarcely  any  other  covering  for  the  head  is  worn 
by  the  inabitants  of  the  Seychelles.  Out  of  the  nut  are  made 
vessels  of  different  forms  and  uses.  When  preserved  whole, 
and  perforated  in  one  or  two  places,  the  shell  serves  to  carry 
water,  and  two  of  them  are  suspended  from  opposite  ends  of 
a  stick.  Some  of  these  nuts  hold  six  to  eight  pints.  If  di- 
vided in  two,  between  the  lobes,  each  portion  serves,  accord- 
ing to  the  size  and  shape,  for  dishes,  plates,  or  drinking  cups, 
these  being  valuable  from  their  great  strength  and  durability, 
this  kind  of  utensil  bears  in  the  Seychelles  Islands  the  name 
of  Vaisselle  de  Phk  Praslin;  and  such  is  the  estimation  in 
which  these  nuts  are  held  by  the  negroes  and  poor  people  of 
other  islands,  that  the  sailors  always  try  to  obtain  them  and 
make  them  part  of  the  cargo  of  their  vessels.  Amongst 
other  articles,  shaving  dishes — black,  beautifully  polished, 
carved,  and  set  in  silver — are  made  from  them.* 

*  Hooker,  in  Botanical  Magazine,  vol.  liv. 


84  COCOA-NUTS. 

MRS.  F. 

Let  me,  my  dear  Mrs.  Clifford,  thank  you,  in  the  name  of 
my  party,  as  well  as  for  myself,  for  this  very  interesting  ac- 
count. But,  I  think,  we  must  go  home. 

MRS.  c. 

Ybu  had  better  first  rest  yourselves  in  the  house. 
To  this  they  willingly  assented,  and  left  the  garden. 


85 


CHAPTER  V. 

ON  GLASS. 

FAHRENHEIT   AND   REAUMUR.— GLASS   FIRE   SCREEN.— ICE   WINDOWS. 

—  GLASS    OF     POMPEII. VENETIAN     GLASS. — GLASS     WINDOWS    IN 

ENGLAND. — DISCOVERY      OF     GLASS. — SAND. — BARONS*     CAVE     AT 
REIGATE. — BARILLA.— KELP. — FUCI,   USES    OF. — FUCUS   NATANS.— 

WRACK. FUCUS    TENAX.— LAMINARIJE.—  FUCUS    CRISPUS. — DULSE. 

— LAVER. — GELIDIUM. — CHINESE  SWALLOW. — SOY. — RED  SNOW. 


HENRIETTA. 

I  DID  not  like  to  interrupt  you,  aunt,  in  the  garden;  but 
when  you  were  telling  us  about  the  steppes  of  Asia,  you 
talked  of  the  heat  being  at  30°  of  Reaumur.*  .How  high  is 
that  in  our  thermometer1? 

MRS.  F. 

Ours,  and  indeed  most  of  the  thermometers  used  in  Eng- 
land, are  graduated  by  Fahrenheit's  scale,  whereas  on  the 
Continent,  Reaumur's  is  more  frequently  employed.  The 
difference  is  this,  that  in  Fahrenheit's  scale,  the  freezing 
point  is  placed  at  32  degrees,  whereas  in  Reaumur's  it  is  at 
zero.  The  degrees  also  of  Fahrenheit's  are  less  than  Reau- 
mur's in  the  proportion  of  9  to  4:  that  is,  nine  degrees  of  Fah- 
renheit are  only  equivalent  to  four  of  Reaumur. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  then  do  you  convert  one  into  the  other? 

MRS.  F. 
To  bring  Fahrenheit  into  Reaumur,  you  multiply  by  four 

*  See  page  62. 


86  GLASS  SCREENS. 

and  divide  by  nine,  and  substract  32  degrees  from  the  quotient, 
and  vice  versa  when  the  opposite  calculation  is  to  be  made. 
Let  me  see  if  you  understand  it,  by  telling1  me  what  height 
of  Fahrenheit  is  equal  to  the  30  degrees  of  Reaumur  of  which 
we  were  speaking. 


30  multiplied  by  9,  equals  270;  divided  by  4,  equals  67 i; 
add  32,  equals  99 £,  the  degree  of  Fahrenheit. 

V       MRS.  F. 

Very  well;  but  now  suppose  it  is  below  the  zero  of  Reau- 
mur, how  would  you  then  calculate  it?  We  will  say  40° 
below. 


We  must  then  substract  the  32°,  thus:  40  multiplied  by  9, 
equals  360;  divided  by  4,  equals  90;  subtract  32,  equals  58° 
below  the  zero  of  Fahrenheit. 

MRS.  F. 

Now  convert  50°  of  Fahrenheit  into  Reaumur,  and  write  it 
down  with  the  proper  arithmetical  signs. 

ESTHER. 

Here  it  is,  mamma:  50—32=18x4=72-^-9=8,  the  de- 
gree of  Reaumur. 

MRS.  F. 

I  think  now  that  you  must  all  understand  the  difference 
most  clearly.  I  see,  Mrs.  Clifford,  that  you  have  one  of  the 
new  plate-glass  screens;  do  you  find  it  answer? 

MRS.  c. 
Most  perfectly. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  do  not  understand  how  a  plate  of  glass  should  keep  out 
the  heat  of  the  fire;  for  when,  in  a  sunny  day,  I  sit  in  the 


PHENOMENA  OF  HEAT.  87 

window,  I  feel  the  heat  as  great  through  the  window  as  if  I 
were  sitting  outside. 

MRS.  c. 

This  singular  and  important  difference  has  been  the  sub- 
ject of  many  curious  experiments,  and  it  is  found  that  terres- 
trial heat  (that  is,  heat  radiating  from  fires  or  heated  bodies) 
is  intercepted  and  detained  by  glass  or  other  transparent  sub- 
stances, while  solar  heat  is  not;  and  that  terrestrial  heat 
being  so  detained,  heats  the  bodies  through  which  it  passes, 
which  solar  heat  is  incapable  of  doing.  More  recent  re- 
searches, however,  show  that  this  detention  is  complete  only 
when  the  temperature  of  the  source  of  heat  is  low,  and  that 
as  the  temperature  becomes  higher,  a  portion  of  the  heat  ra- 
diated, acquires  the  power  of  penetrating  glass. 

ESTHER. 

Then  it  is  only  because  the  sun  is  so  much  hotter  than  any 
terrestrial  heat,  that  it  is  thus  able  to  penetrate! 

MRS.  c. 

Precisely  so;  and  therefore  this  discovery  is  important,  be- 
cause it  shows  that  solar  and  terrestrial  heat  are  of  the  same 
nature;  and,  at  the  same  time,  it  leads  us  to  regard  the  actual 
temperature  of  the  sun  as  far  exceeding  that  of  any  earthly 
flame.* 

ESTHER. 

I  have  read  that  in  many  parts  of  Russia  large  sheets  of 
talc  are  substituted  for  glass  in  windows. 

MRS.  c. 

And  in  the  Province  of  Yakutsk,  in  Siberia,  the  inhabi- 
tants sometimes  cut  large  blocks  of  ice,  the  size  of  the  win- 
dow frames,  which  they  put  in  and  let  them  freeze  fast. 
These  serve  them  the  winter  through;  and  though  they  give 
rather  an  opaque  kind  of  light,  they  are  perfectly  tight  and 
warm,  and  remain  unthawed  until  the  spring,  f 

*  HerschePs  Preliminary  Discourse, 
t  DobelPs  Travels  in  Kamschatka. 


86  GLASS  SCREENS. 

and  divide  by  nine,  and  substract  32  degrees  from  the  quotient, 
and  vice  versa  when  the  opposite  calculation  is  to  be  made. 
Let  me  see  if  you  understand  it,  by  telling  me  what  height 
of  Fahrenheit  is  equal  to  the  30  degrees  of  Reaumur  of  which 
we  were  speaking. 


30  multiplied  by  9,  equals  270;  divided  by  4,  equals  67£; 
add  32,  equals  99^,  the  degree  of  Fahrenheit. 

V       MRS.  F. 

Very  well;  but  now  suppose  it  is  below  the  zero  of  Reau- 
mur, how  would  you  then  calculate  it?  We  will  say  40° 
below. 

ESTHER. 

We  must  then  substract  the  32°,  thus:  40  multiplied  by  9, 
equals  360;  divided  by  4,  equals  90;  subtract  32,  equals  58° 
below  the  zero  of  Fahrenheit. 

MRS.  F. 

Now  convert  50°  of  Fahrenheit  into  Reaumur,  and  write  it 
down  with  the  proper  arithmetical  signs. 

ESTHER. 

Here  it  is,  mamma:  50— 32=18x4=72-^-9=8,  the  de- 
gree of  Reaumur. 

MRS.  F. 

I  think  now  that  you  must  all  understand  the  difference 
most  clearly.  I  see,  Mrs.  Clifford,  that  you  have  one  of  the 
new  plate-glass  screens;  do  you  find  it  answer] 

MRS.  c. 
Most  perfectly. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  do  not  understand  how  a  plate  of  glass  should  keep  out 
the  heat  of  the  fire;  for  when,  in  a  sunny  day,  I  sit  in  the 


PHENOMENA  OF  HEAT.  87 

window,  I  feel  the  heat  as  great  through  the  window  as  if  I 
were  sitting  outside. 


This  singular  and  important  difference  has  been  the  sub- 
ject of  many  curious  experiments,  and  it  is  found  that  terres- 
trial heat  (that  is,  heat  radiating  from  fires  or  heated  bodies) 
is  intercepted  and  detained  by  glass  or  other  transparent  sub- 
stances, while  solar  heat  is  not;  and  that  terrestrial  heat 
being  so  detained,  heats  the  bodies  through  which  it  passes, 
which  solar  heat  is  incapable  of  doing.  More  recent  re- 
searches, however,  show  that  this  detention  is  complete  only 
when  the  temperature  of  the  source  of  heat  is  low,  and  that 
as  the  temperature  becomes  higher,  a  portion  of  the  heat  ra- 
diated, acquires  the  power  of  penetrating  glass. 

ESTHER. 

Then  it  is  only  because  the  sun  is  so  much  hotter  than  any 
terrestrial  heat,  that  it  is  thus  able  to  penetrate? 

MRS.  c. 

Precisely  so;  and  therefore  this  discovery  is  important,  be- 
cause it  shows  that  solar  and  terrestrial  heat  are  of  the  same 
nature;  and,  at  the  same  time,  it  leads  us  to  regard  the  actual 
temperature  of  the  sun  as  far  exceeding  that  of  any  earthly 

flame.* 

•  .'  / 

ESTHER. 

I  have  read  that  in  many  parts  of  Russia  large  sheets  of 
talc  are  substituted  for  glass  in  windows. 

MRS.  c. 

And  in  the  Province  of  Yakutsk,  in  Siberia,  the  inhabi- 
tants sometimes  cut  large  blocks  of  ice,  the  size  of  the  win- 
dow frames,  which  they  put  in  and  let  them  freeze  fast. 
These  serve  them  the  winter  through;  and  though  they  give 
rather  an  opaque  kind  of  light,  they  are  perfectly  tight  and 
warm,  and  remain  unthawed  until  the  spring. f 

*  Herschel's  Preliminary  Discourse, 
t  DobelPs  Travels  in  Kamschatka. 


88  GLASS. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  how  very  cold  it  must  be  there. 

MRS.  c. 

Yes;  Yakutsk  is  the  coldest  part  of  Siberia  —  the  ther- 
mometer sometimes  stands  there  at  44°  below  the  zero  of 
Reaumur's  thermometer. 

MRS.  F. 

Which,  by  our  recent  mode  of  calculation,  is  equal  to  67° 
below  the  freezing  point  of  Fahrenheit. 

MRS.  c. 

The  accounts  of  the  value  of  glass  among  the  ancients  is 
very  contradictory.  That  it  was  in  frequent  use,  we  see  from 
the  number  of  glass  cups,  plates,  bottles,  &c.,  which  have 
been  found  in  Pompeii,  some  of  blue,  green,  and  yellow  glass; 
and  also  from  the  paintings  of  fruit,  eggs,  &c.,  in  glass  ves- 
sels, which  adorned  the  walls  of  the  rooms.  That  their 
windows  also  were  glazed,  appears  from  the  leaden  or  brass 
divisions  to  the  window  frames  in  some  of  the  houses,  and  in 
one,  a  pane  of  glass  yet  remains.  When  windows  of  glass 
became  common,  it  is  difficult  to  say.  A  writer  accuses  an 
individual  of  luxury  in  having  glass  windows  in  the  time  of 
Aurelian;  and  yet  Caligula,  when  giving  audience  to  Philo, 
a  rich  Jew  of  Alexandria,  is  stated  to  have  attended  to  no- 
thing but  to  the  new  glazing  of  his  windows,  so  that  the 
imperial  palace  must  have  been  glazed  long  before,  to  have 
required  renewing.* 

ESTHER. 

Did  not  the  ancients  know  how  to  render  glass  malleable1? 

MRS.  c. 

So  we  are  told;  and  Tiberius  is  said  to  have  beheaded  its 
inventor.  An  Arabian  writer  speaks  of  the  malleability  of 
glass  as  known  to  the  Egyptians  —  who  were  certainly  well 
acquainted  with  the  manufacture  of  glass,  as  the  objects  dis- 

'  *  Sir  William  Cell. 


GLASS.  89 

covered  in  their  tombs  testify.  A  ball  of  glass  has  been 
found,  bearing  the  date  of  an  Egyptian  king  who  lived  about 
1500  years  before  the  Christian  era.  It  has  a  slight  greenish 
hue,  and  has  been  worn  as  the  bead  of  a  necklace.  The 
Egyptians  also  understood  the  art  of  carrying  devices  of  va- 
rious colors  directly  through  the  fused  substance,  an  art 
which  is  now  lost.*  But  it  appears  that  the  Egyptians 
carried  the  manufacture  of  glass,  vitrified  porcelain,  &c.,  to 
great  perfection;  and  every  thing  that  we  can  do  by  the  appli- 
cation of  fire  in  these  arts,  they  were  also  able  to  effect,  j 

MRS.  F. 

The  old  Venetian  glass  has  patterns  or  devices  introduced 
into  the  substance  with  fine  filaments  of  spun  glass,  which 
gives  the  appearance  of  lace  work;  this  is  an  art  which  I  be- 
lieve is  lost,  and  the  old  Venetian  glass  is  much  prized  and 
sought  after.  The  manufacture  of  the  glass  beads  still  exists, 
and  gives  employment  to  some  hundreds  of  persons. 

MRS.  c. 
Did  you  see  it! 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  when  we  were  at  Venice,  we  made  an  excursion  to 
the  Isle  of  Murano,  where  the  manufacture  is  carried  on. 
The  glass  is  drawn  out  into  sticks  of  the  intended  diameter 
of  the  bead,  bat  a  hundred  and  twenty  feet  long.  These  are 
then  cut,  polished,  and  rounded.  The  process  employed  in 
these  operations  is  very  simple,  but  curious;  and  the  manu- 
facturers profess  to  keep  the  mixing  of  the  colors,  &c.  in  the 
glass  a  profound  secret.  Looking-glasses  are  also  manu- 
factured in  the  same  island;  but  France  and  England  have  so 
far  surpassed  the  Venetians  in  this  art,  that  they  cannot 
attempt  to  compete  with  them. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  long  have  glass  windows  been  introduced  into  Eng- 
land1? 

*  See  Mr.  Wilkinson's  Thebes.  f  Cuvier. 

8* 


90  GLASS. 

MRS.  F. 

In  church  windojjis,  they  have  been  used  for  upwards  of  a 
thousand  years,  but  glazed  windows  in  dwelling-houses  were 
rare  even  in  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.  They  were  then 
moveable  furniture;  and  we  read  so  late  as  the  reign  of  Queen 
Elizabeth,  that  when  the  Earl  of  Northumberland  left  Aln- 
wick  Castle,  in  1573,  the  windows  were  taken  out  of  their 
frames,  and  laid  carefully  by.  But,  talking  of  glass,  I  con- 
clude that  you  are  all  familiar  with  the  account  of  the  first 
discovery  of  glass1? 

HENRIETTA. 

About  the  merchants  who  were  wrecked  with  a  cargo  of 
nitre,  upon  the  coast  of  Palestine,  near  the  river  Belus,  and 
who  supported  their  kettles  with  the  blocks  of  nitre,  which, 
combining  with  the  sand,  produced  glass] 

MRS.  F. 

Exactly  so.  Whether  the  account  be  fabulous  or  not,  there 
is  little  doubt  but  that  its  first  discovery  is  to  be  attributed  to 
accident. 

ESTHER. 

Is  sand  much  used  now  in  making  glass? 

MRS.  F. 

Generally;  but  in  glass  for  artificial  stones  powdered  rock 
crystal  is  usually  employed  in  preference;  flints  and  the  white 
quartz  pebbles  found  in  rivers  are  also  sometimes  used. 

ESTHER. 

The  sand  of  Alum  Bay,  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  is  particu- 
larly white,  and  is  much  employed  in  the  making  of  glass. 

MRS.  c. 
And  so  is  that  in  the  vast  sand  caverns  at  Reigate. 

MRS.  F.  f 

I  never  heard  of  them,  though  I  have  often  passed  through 
that  town,  in  my  way  to  Brighton. 


CAVE.  91 

MRS.  C. 

Then  I  would  recommend  you  to  visit  them  the  next  time 
you  go  that  road,  for  they  are  interesting  from  their  historical 
associations,  as  well  as  from  their  being  natural  curiosities. 

ESTHER. 

Pray,  have  the  kindness  to  describe  them  to  us. 

?V '-""•  MRS.  C. 

The  entrance  is  upon  the  top  of  a  hill  which  overlooks  the 
town,  and  on  which  formerly  stood  a  strong  castle.  The 
cave  is  about  200  feet  long,  and  is  excavated  out  of  the  sand. 
It  contains  one  branching  vault  near  'the  centre,  called  the 
Barons'  Cave,  which  tradition  has  rendered  famous  by  assert- 
ing that  it  was  there  that  the  Barons  held  their  secret  meet- 
ings, and  drew  up  the  terms  which  they  afterwards  compelled 
John  to  accept  at  Runnymede. 

ESTHER. 

How  large  is  the  Barons'  Cave? 

MRS.  c.  - 

About  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet  long,  twelve  wide,  and  from 
ten  to  twelve  high.*  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  originally 
excavated  as  a  retreat,  at  the  time  of  the  invasion  of  the 
Danes.  There  is  also  another  cavern  in  the  lower  part  of 
the  town,  near  an  inn:  but  in  this  the  sand  is  left  in  columns 
to  support  it,  and  the  high  road  runs  over  it.  Here  the  peo- 
ple amuse  themselves  in  the  winter,  by  playing  nine-pins,  &c.; 
and  the  sand  is  dug  out  for  the  London  markets,  and  consti- 
tutes an  object  of  some  traffic. 

MRS.  F. 

Thank  you,  Mrs.  Clifford;  we  will  certainly  visit  the  Ba- 
rons' Cave  the  first  opportunity. 

MRS.  c. 
Now  that  we  are  on  the  subject  of  glass,  can  any  of  your 

*  Conybeare  and  Phillips'  Geology. 


92  BARILLA  AND  KELP. 

young  people   tell   me   the   difference  between  barilla  and 
kelp? 

ESTHER. 

I  fear  not;  but  we  must  ask  you  to  explain  it. 


They  are  both,  as  you  know,  alkalis,  and  produce  soda. 
Barilla  is  the  ash  of  the  plant  Sabola  Soda,  which  is  largely 
cultivated  upon  the  Mediterranean  shore  of  Spain,  in  the  vi- 
cinity of  Alicant.*  Kelp  is  a  production  of  Great  Britain, 
and  consists  of  the  ashes  of  sea-weeds,  which  are  collected 
upon  many  of  the  rocky  coasts  of  Britain,  particularly  in  the 
Highlands,  where  it  affords  employment  to  a  large  popula- 
tion. 

ESTHER. 

It  is  produced  from  a  species  of  Tangle  or  Fucus,  is  it 
not? 


Ulvse  and  Fuci. 

MRS.  c. 
There  are  four  species  which  are  principally  used — Fucus 

*  As  much  as  fifty-five  per  cent,  of  soda  is  contained  in  the  ashes 
of  Salsola  sativa,  which  grows  in  Sicily.     (Lindley. ) 


KELP.  93 

serratus,  digitatus,  nodosus,  and  vesiculosus,  which  are  the 
hardest  of  the  tribe;  nodosus  being  the  most  thick  and  coria- 
ceous of  the  Fuci,  is  most  preferred,  and  next  vesiculosus, 
which  is  very  abundant.  The  kelp  harvest  takes  place  in 
June,  July,  and  August.  The  drift-weed,  which  is  thrown 
on  shore,  is  sometimes  used,  but  never,  if  iujured,  as  in 
that  state  it  contains  but  little  salt.  The  Fuci  are  cut  with  a 
sickle  at  low  water  from  the  rocks  upon  which  they  grow, 
and  are  brought  to  the  shore  by  a  very  simple  and  ingenious 
process.  A  rope  of  heath  or  birch  is  laid  beyond  them,  and 
the  ends  being  carried  up  above  high-water  mark,  the  whole 
floats  as  the  tide  rises;  and  thus  by  shortening  the  rope,  the 
Fucus  is  compelled  to  settle  above  the  wash  of  the  sea,  when 
it  is  conveyed  to  dry  land  on  horseback.  The  more  quickly 
it  is  dried  the  better  is  the  produce.  It  is  burnt  in  kilns,  or 
merely  in  holes  excavated  in  the  earth,  or  surrouuded  with 
stones.  In  the  Orkneys  the  holes  of  earth  are  preferred. 
When  I  tell  you  that  24  tons  of  sea-weed  only  produce  one 
ton  of  kelp,  you  will  easily  understand  how  the  cutting,  land- 
ing, carrying,  drying,  stacking,  and  burning  the  weed  are 
the  source  of  employment  to  so  many  poor  people;  but,  since 
the  admission  of  foreign  barilla  this  manufacture  has  nearly 
died  away,  and  a  numerous  class  of  poor  and  industrious  per- 
sons have  thus  been  thrown  out  of  employ.* 


Do  they  cut  the  same  plants  annually] 

MRS.  c. 

No;  only  every  second  or  third  year.  But,  independent 
of  their  use  for  kelp,  the  different  species  of  Fuci  are  of  the 
greatest  utility.  Fucus  vesiculosus  is  frequently  used  in  the 
West  Highlands  and  islands  of  Scotland,  as  food  for  cattle, 
who  regularly  come  down  to  the  sea-shore,  at  the  receding  of 
the  tide,  to  seek  for  itf ;  and  even  the  deer  have  been  known 

*  M'Culloch's  Highlands,  and  Brande's  Chemistry. 

t  Cattle  are  also  very  fond  of  Fucus  canaliculatus,  and  never  fail 
to  browse  upon  it  in  winter,  as  soon  as  the  tide  leaves  it  within  their 
reach. 


94          ^  -  USES  OF  SEA-WEED. 

to  descend  from  the  mountains  to  the  sea-side  to  feed  upon 
this  plant.  Linnasus  tells  us,  that  the  inhabitants  of  Goth- 
land boil  this  plant  in  water,  and  mix  it  with  meal  to  feed 
their  pigs;  arid  in  Scania  they  cover  their  cottages  with  it, 
and  use  it  for  fuel.  In  Jura  and  some  other  Hebrides,  they 
dry  their  cheeses  without  salt,  by  covering  them  with  the 
ashes  of  this  plant.* 

MRS.  F. 

Fucus  serratus  is  used  for  most  of  the  same  purposes,  and 
also  for  manure;  and  in  the  Isle  of  Thanet,  the  farmers  care- 
fully collect  the  sea-weed,  which,  after  a  gale  of  wind,  is 
sometimes  thrown  upon  the  shore.  It  is  carted  through 
sloping  passages  cut  in  the  cliff;  and  it  sometimes  comes  in 
quantities  amounting  to  many  thousands  of  loads,  which  the 
succeeding  tide  often  sweeps  entirely  away,  if  not  expedi- 
tiously  gathered  up.  You  know  also  that  iodine,  which  has 
been  so  successfully  used  iu  curing  goitres,  is  derived  from 
the  marine  Algas;  and  we  are  informed  that  in  South  Ame- 
rica, the  stem  of  a  Fucus  had  been  successfully  applied  to 
the  same  purpose,  long  before  iodine  was  employed  in  Eu- 
rope. 

ESTHER. 

Then  there  is  the  sea- weed  which  the  companions  of  Co- 
lumbus were  so  alarmed  in  finding  in  such  quantities. 

MRS.  c. 

That  is  Fucus  natans,  which  covers  the  sea  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  Cape  Verd  Islands,  and  the  floating  masses  of  which 
are  so  abundant,  in  the  seas  of  warmer  climates,  as  to  impede 
the  progress  of  the  vessels. 

ESTHER. 
Are  not  the  Fuci  generally,  called  wrack. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  the  term  which  is  derived  from  their  French  denomi- 
*  Hooker,  in  vol.  v.  of  English  Flora. 


VARIETIES  OF  SEA-WEED.  95 

nation,  varec.    The  one  which  we  have  been  just  alluding  to 
s  often  called  the  Gulf-iveed. 


The  JllgsD,  the  order  to  which  the  Fuci  belong,  afford 
many  other  interesting  plants.  Fucus  tenax,  which,  though 
a  small  plant,  is  collected  in  such  large  quantities,  that  27, 
000  Ibs.  are  annually  imported  at  Canton,  where  it  is  used 
for  the  same  purpose  that  we  employ  glue  and  gum.  The 
Chinese  chiefly  use  it  in  the  manufacture  of  lanterns,  to 
strengthen  or  varnish  the  paper,  and  sometimes  to  thicken  or 
give  a  gloss  to  their  silks  and  gauzes.*  The  Laminarise,  in 
which  the  inhabitants  of  New  Holland  find  materials  for  in- 
strumentsf  and  for  vases^:  to  hold  water,  and  which  they  also 
eat  as  food.§  Those  of  the  polar  regions  yield  nourishment 
in  time  of  famine;  and  Laminaria  digitata  was  consecrated  to 
the  sorcerers  in  Iceland,  Norway,  and  the  North  of  Scotland. 

MRS.  c. 

The  last  you  mention,  is  the  Tangle  of  the  Scotch,  and  is 
called  by  us  Sea  Girdles. 


Fucus  crispus,\\  which  is  abundant  on  rocky  shores,  has 
been  extensively  collected  on  the  coast  of  Ireland,  washed, 
bleached  upon  the  beach,  and  employed  as  a  substitute  for 
isin-glass  in  making  blanc  mange,  &c.  Then  there  is  the 
Dulse  (Halymtnia  palmetto,,}  which  we  have  all  often  gather- 
ed and  eaten.  This  is  the  saccharine  Fucus,  which  is  dried 
in  Iceland,  packed  down  in  casks,  and  used  as  occasion  re- 
quires. It  is  also  a  great  favorite  with  cattle,  and  sheep  in 
particular  eat  this  species  with  great  eagerness.  The  Scotch 
eat  it  in  a  crude  state,  and  also  dried  and  rolled  up,  when  they 
use  it  as  tobacco.^f 

*  Lindlej.  §  L.  saccharina  and  esculent;!. 

t  L.  buccinalis.  ||  Chondrus  genus  of  Hooker. 

\  L.  potatorum. 
5  Hooker's  English  Flora,  vol.  v.  p.  291. 


96  CHINESE  SOUP. 

ESTHER. 

Does  not  Laver  also  belong  to  the  order  Jllgx? 

MRS.  c. 

Yes;  there  are  several  species  of  it  which  are  eaten.*  Bat 
there  still  remains  another  interesting  genus  in  this  order,  the 
Gelidium,  which  serve  as  nourishment  to  several  Asiatic 
nations,  who  use  them  to  thicken  their  sauces  and  to  mode- 
rate the  burning  of  their  spices.  With  a  species  of  Gelidium, 
the  salangane  or  Chinese  swallow  (Hirundo  esculentus)  builds 
its  highly  esteemed  nest.  As  we  are  on  the  subject,  suppose 
we  read  the  interesting  account  of  this  little  bird,  in  the  9th 
volume  of  the  Library  of  Entertaining  Knowledge. 

(The  book  was  taken  down  and  the  extract  read.) 

MRS.  c. 

There  is  one  piece  of  information  which  I  can  add  to  the 
account  which  we  have  just  read;  and  that  is  the  mode  in 

which  the  Chinese  prepare  their  bird's-nest  soup. 

•• 

HENRIETTA. 

We  should  like  very  much  to  hear  it. 

MRS.  C. 

-  The  soup  is  served  up  with  pigeons'  or  plovers'  eggs  float- 
ing on  it.  It  is  made  into  a  very  strong  broth,  by  boiling 
and  consuming  the  pounded  flesh  of  fowls,  a  portion  of  which 
remains  in  it.  There  being  neither  salt  nor  pepper  in  the 
preparation  of  this  dish,  it  would  be  quite  insipid  were  it  not 
for  vinegar  and  soy,  which  you  use  at  pleasure,  f 

ESTHER. 

I  have  heard  all  kinds  of  strange  stories  about  Soy,  and 
should  like  very  much  to  know  what  it  is  really  made  of. 

MRS.  c. 
Soy  is  made  from  a  species  of  Dolichos  (D.Soja).     These 

*  Ulva  lactuca,  latissima,  Porphyra  laciniata,  vulgaris,  &c. 
t  Dobcll's  Kamschatka. 


RED  SNOW.  97 

beans  are  boiled  until  all  the  water  is  nearly  evaporated,  and 
they  begin  to  burn,  when  they  are  taken  from  the  fire  and 
placed  in  large  wide-mouthed  jars,  exposed  to  the  sun  and 
air;  water  and  a  certain  proportion  of  molasses  or  very  brown 
sugar  are  added.  These  jars  are  stirred  well  everyday,  until 
the  liquor  and  beans  are  completely  mixed  and  fermented;  the 
material  is  then  strained,  salted,  and  boiled,  and  skimmed 
until  clarified,  and  will,  after  this  process,  become  of  a  very 
deep  brown  color,  and  keep  any  length  of  time.  "  Many  per- 
sons have  thought  that  gravy  was  used  in  preparing  this 
condiment;  but  this  appears  not  to  be  the  case,  the  composi- 
tion being  entirely  a  vegetable  one,  of  an  agreeable  flavor, 
and  said  to  be  wholesome.  There  are  two  or  three  qualities 
of  soy.  To  make  the  best,  requires  much  care  and  attention. 
Japanese  soy  is  much  esteemed  in  China,  on  account  of  the 
superior  manner  in  which  it  is  made;  perhaps,  they  have  a 
different  species  of  bean  for  the  purpose.  Shopkeepers  at 
Canton  who  sell  soy  have  large  platforms  on  the  roofs  of  their 
houses,  where  the  jars  for  preparing  soy  are  arranged  and  ex- 
posed to  the  sun,  for  the  cousumption  of  soy  is  enormous. 
Neither  rich  nor  poor  can  breakfast,  dine  or  sup  without  it; 
it  is  the  sauce  for  all  kinds  of  food,  gives  a  zest  to  every  dish 
and  may  be  said  to  be  indispensable  at  a  Chinese  repast.* 

MRS.  F. 

Thank  you,  Mrs.  Clifford.  I  think  that  we  must  now  re- 
turn home. 

MRS.  c. 

But  before  we  leave  our  conversation  upon  the  Algae,  we 
must  mention  the  celebrated  red  snow  of  the  northern  travel- 
lers, which  is  a  production  of  a  genus  of  this  order — Proto- 
coccus  nivalis.  In  Great  Britain  it  is  found  in  the  form  of  a 
thin  stratum  on  the  surface  of  rocks,  or  investing  decayed 
vegetable  substances  with  a  purple  crust.  It  was  brought  by 
Capt.  Ross  from  the  Arctic  regions,  where  it  was  observed 
covering  the  surface  of  the  snow,  in  patches  of  many  miles 

*  Dobell. 


98  REFLECTIONS. 

in  extent,  and  penetrating,  in  some  places,  to  the  depth  of 
twelve  feet.  It  has  likewise  been  found  to  occur  commonly, 
on  most  of  the  monntains  of  Europe,  in  similar  situations.* 


I  think  we  have  now  enumerated  a  long  list  of  useful  indi- 
viduals in  this  subordinate  class  of  plants,  and,  at  some  other 
time,  we  will  go  into  the  other  orders  of  Cryptogamia.  In 
all,  we  shall  find  plants  of  the  greatest  service  to  man;  and 
indeed,  in  all  our  researches,  we  may  rest  assured  that  not 
even  the  lowest  object  in  the  scale  of  creation,  or  the  minu- 
test lichen  which  covers  the  arid  rock,  was  ever  made  in  vain. 
But  the  carriage  is  come,  so  we  will  wish  Mrs.  Clifford  good 
night,  and  offer  her  our  best  thanks  for  the  gratification  and 
instruction  which  she  has  afforded  us. 

*  Hooker. 


99 
CHAPTER  VI. 

ITALIAN  MANUFACTURES. 

SPARTERIE.  —  LEGHORN    HATS. MODE    OF    CULTIVATING    AND  PRE- 
PARING    THE    STRAW.  —  MANUFACTORY   AT   BENENDEN. — PIETRA 

DURA.  —  MEDICI  CHAPEL.  —  ROMAN  MOSAIC.  —  ROMAN  PEARLS. 

ARGENTINE.  —  LF,VITICAL  PROHIBITIONS  WITH  REGARD  TO  FISH. 

JEWS  IN  ROME.  —  CEREMONY  OF  THE  RENEWAL  OF  THEIR  PER- 
MISSION TO  REMAIN  IN  ROME.  —  FINAL  RESTORATION  OF  THE 
JEWS. 


HENRIETTA. 

AUNT,  will  you  have  the  kindness  to  tell  me  of  what  your 
hat  is  made1?  I  see  that  it  is  neither  of  straw  nor  willow. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  of  the  material  usually  called  "  Sparterie,"  a  term 
which  originated  in  its  being  first  made  of  the  grass  called 
Lygeum  Spartum;  but  now,  I  believe,  that  many  other  sub- 
stances are  employed.  Mine  is  made  of  the  poplar,  which  is 
cut  into  very  thin  slices  for  that  purpose. 


What  is  the  reason,  mamma,  that  Dunstable  straw  is  con- 
sidered so  superior  to  any  other! 

MRS.  F. 

,  This  superiority  is  generally  attributed  to  the  straw  being 
grown  upon  a  chalky  soil,  which  makes  it  finer  in  color  and 
more  pliant  than  that  which  is  grown  upon  clay  or  sand;  but, 
independent  of  the  superior  fineness  of  the  Italian  straw,  the 
British  manufacturer  will  never  be  able  to  compete  with  the 
foreign,  in  consequence  of  the  cheapness  of  labor  upon  the 


100  MODE  OF  CULTIVATING  AND 

Continent.  Hertfordshire  straw  has  actually  been  sent  to 
Switzerland,  plaited  in  that  country,  and  returned  to  England, 
where,  notwithstanding  the  import  duty  of  seventeen  shillings 
a  pound,  it  can  be  sold  at  one  quarter  less  price  than  plait 
made  at  home.* 

ESTHER. 

And  pray,  mamma,  of  what  straw  are  the  Leghorn  hats 
made1? 

MRS.  F. 

Of  wheat  straw;  but,  as  the  universal  employment  of  Leg- 
horn hats  renders  their  manufacture  an  object  of  some  inter- 
est, suppose  we  devote  our  conversation  this  morning  to  the 
subject? 

FREDERICK. 

Thank  you,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

These  hats  are  called  Leghorn,  because  it  is  from  this  port 
that  they  are  principally  sent  to  England;  but  they  are  made 
in  most  parts  of  Tuscany;  and  in  traversing  the  Val  d'Arno, 
in  the  road  from  Pisa  to  Florence,  we  saw  the  peasants  sitting 
at  their  doors  plaiting  the  straw,  which  seemed  to  form  the 
principal  occupation  of  the  country.  The  wheat,  in  order  to 
bring  the  straw  to  the  requisite  degree  of  fineness,  is  submit- 
ted to  a  peculiar  mode  of  cultivation.  The  poorest,  lightest, 
and  most  sandy  soil  is  selected,  and  if  it  be  an  elevated  land, 
and  full  of  stones  and  pebbles,  it  will  answer  the  better,  and 
produce  the  finer  straw;  for,  you  must  recollect,  that  the  ob- 
ject in  view  is  directly  in  opposition  to  that  which  we  usually 
strive  to  attain.  Instead  of  producing  a  fine,  vigorous  plant, 
the  aim  is  to  render  it  as  weakly,  as  thin,  and  producing  as 
little  grain  as  possible.  The  land,  therefore,  is  but  slightly 
prepared  for  its  reception;  the  corn  is  sown  very  thickly,  to 
crowd  the  plants  closely  together.  It  is  usually  sown 

*  Transactions  of  the  Society  of  Arts. 


MANUFACTURING  THE  STRAW.  101 

in  autumn  in  preference  to  the  spring,  because  then  the  plant 
sooner  arrives  at  maturity,  and  the  whole  of  the  succeeding 
summer  is  before  the  manufacturer  for  bleaching  and  prepar- 
ing the  straw.  As  soon  as  the  stalk  has  attained  sufficient 
strength,  it  is  gathered. 

ESTHER. 
Do  not  they  wait  until  the  corn  is  ripe] 

MRS.  F. 

The  grain  is  suffered  to  form,  but  not  to  ripen,  except  upon 
those  stalks  which  are  reserved  for  seed,  and  these  are  em- 
ployed for  hats  of  an  inferior  quality.  The  wheat  is  pulled 
up  by  the  roots,  in  order  to  procure  the  stalk  as  long  as  possi- 
ble, and  is  laid  in  small  bundles  to  be  exposed  for  four  or  five 
days  to  the  sun.  The  dew  assists  the  bleaching,  but  rain 
spoils  the  color;  once  wetted,  it  loses  all  its  whiteness,  and 
can  never  be  used  for  the  finest  hats. 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  the  whole  of  the  stalk  used? 

MRS.  F. 

Only  that  part  which  extends  from  the  first  knot  in  the 
stalk  to  the  ear.  When  it  has  been  sufficiently  exposed  to 
the  heat  of  the  sun,  the  straw  is  placed  in  a  large  wooden  box 
with  a  chafing-dish  in  the  centre.  Care  is  taken  that  no 
metal  whatever  is  employed  in  the  construction  of  the  box, 
which  is  then  hermetically  closed,  and  the  straw  is  thus  ex- 
posed to  the'  heat  for  three  or  four  days.  It  is  then  sorted 
according  to  its  different  qualities;  and  so  nice  are  the  manu- 
facturers in  their  distinctions,  that  sometimes  as  many  as 
sixty  heaps  will  be  selected  from  one  box,  each  differing  from 
the  other  in  whiteness  or  quality.  Plaiting  is  the  next  ope- 
ration; the  plait  is  begun  with  five  straws,  and  gradually  in- 
creased to  nine,  until  the  crown  of  the  hat  is  completed.  The 
sewing  of  the  hats  so  as  to  make  the  needle  pass  between 
the  different  straws  is  not  a  difficult  process.  When  the  hats 
are  finished,  they  are  bleached,  polished,  and  calendered, 
9* 


102  TUSCAN  HATS. 

being  exposed  to  the  fumes  of  sulphur  from  one  to  three  days, 
in  the  same  case  in  which  they  were  bleached.  The  disco- 
lored straws  are  then  taken  out  with  a  needle  and  scissors, 
and  the  vacancies  supplied  by  others.  The  hats  are  polished 
with  little  pieces  of  boxwood  in  the  form  of  a  shuttle,  with 
which  they  rub  them  always  in  the  same  direction,  and  a 
long  hot  iron  of  about  151bs.  weight  is  employed  for  the  cal- 
endering process. 


It  is  by  the  number  of  the  rows  of  plait  that  the  fineness  of 
a  hat  is  known,  is  it  not1? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  you  will  always  see  a  pencil  figure  in  the  bottom  of 
a  Leghorn  hat,  which  denotes  its  quality. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  becomes  of  the  inferior  straw  hats! 


They  are  generally  dyed  black,  and  worn  by  the  country- 
women themselves.  The  women  about  Florence  wear  round 
black  hats  with  bunches  of  feathers  in  them;  and  I  confess 
the  effect  was  rather  curious  to  my  eyes,  when  the  washer- 
woman who  called  for  our  clothes,  entered  the  room  drest  in 
a  round  black  hat  with  three  feathers:  it  was  probably  these 
round  black  hats  which  made  me  fancy  that  the  Florentines 
resemble  the  Welsh  women  in  their  appearance;  added  to 
which  they  are  short  and -rather  stout,  with  clear  florid  com- 
plexions, and  well  looking.  But  before  we  finish  the  subject 
of  Tuscan  hats,  I  must  tell  you  that  there  is  a  manufactory 
of  them  in  England,  where  they  are  produced  little  inferior  in 
quality  to  the  originals. 

HENRIETTA. 

Oh!  where,  aunt? 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  village  of  Benenden,  in  Kent,  where  it  has  been 


MANUFACTORV  AT  BENENDEN.  103 

established  for  some  years,  through  the  exertions  of  one  of  the 
Members  for  the  county* 

HENRIETTA. 

But  where  did  he  get  the  straw? 

MRS.  F". 

Being  familiar  with  its  mode  of  cultivation  in  Tuscany,  he 
pursued  the  same  method  for  its  production  here.  The  infe- 
rior seed  (what  is  usually  denominated  tail  wheat}  was  sown 
very  thickly  (20  bushels  to  the  acre)  upon  the  most  barren 
soil,  and  the  straw  produced,  is  hardly  inferior  to  the  Tus- 
can.* By  unpicking  a  Leghorn  hat,  the  plait  was  ascer- 
tained, and  was  first  taught  to  a  p'oor  crippled  pauper  in  the 
workhouse,  who  instructed  the  children  in  the  same  art,  until 
a  school  was  gradually  formed.  A  hat  w^s  exhibited  at  the 
Society  of  Arts  some  years  since,  and  was  rewarded  with  a 
medal;  and  since  then  the  demand  for  these  hats  has  so 
rapidly  increased  as  to  afford  the  means  of  occupation  to  a 
considerable  number  of  persons.  Thus  have  the  benevolent 
exertions  of  its  founder  been  crowned  with  success;  and  thus 
should  we  all  endeavor,  when  acquiring  knowledge  ourselves, 
to  turn  it  to  its  only  true  account  —  that  of  promoting  the 
welfare  and  best  interests  of  our  fellow  creatures. 

HENRIETTA. 

Aunt,  you  say  that  you  were  once  at  Florence;  did  you  see 
the  Mosaic  work  there? 


The  pietra  dura  manufactory,  you  mean:  yes;  I  saw  it 
among  the  other  objects  of  curiosity  in  Florence,  and  was 
much  interested  in  the  exhibition.  The  establishment  belongs 
to  the  Grand  Duke,  and  works  only  for  him.  We  went  into 
a  large  gallery  which  had  cabinets  around  it,  all  filled  with 
agates  and  other  fine  stones  employed  in  the  work.  There 

*  At  Benenden  the  process  of  sorting  the  straws  is  effected  by  pass- 
ing them  through  wire  sieves  of  different  degrees  of  fineness. 


104  MEDICI  CHAPEL. 

are  only  eighteen  or  twenty  workmen.  The  stones  are  all 
cut  with  a  wire  and  emery  powder,  and  are  cemented  in  the 
spaces  allotted  to  them  with  a  composition  of  wax,  turpen- 
tine, &c.;  but  so  tedious  is  the  work,  that  one  of  the  men 
showed  me  a  little  piece  of  inlaying,  not  two  inches  square, 
which  had  taken  four  months  to  accomplish.  The  artists  are 
principally  employed  in  works  for  the  Medici  Chapel,  which 
was  begun  by  Ferdinand  I,  in  1604,  and  which  the  present 
Grand  Duke  is  anxious  to  complete. 

ESTHER. 
I  suppose  it  is  very  magnificent. 


Yes;  it  is  lined  with  all  the  richest  varieties  of  jaspers, 
marbles,  &c.  Its  form  is  octagon:  six  sides  are  ornamented 
with  magnificent  sarcophagi  of  Egyptian  granite,*  and  round 
it  are  the  armorial  bearings  of  sixteen  Tuscan  cities, f  most 
exquisitely  executed  in  lapis  lazuli,  mother-o'-pearl,  oriental 
alabaster,  and  all  the  most  precious  stones  —  the  name  of 
each  city  being  inscribed  in  lapis  lazuli  upon  tablets  of  giallo 
antico.  The  grandeur  of  this  chapel  forms  a  singular  con- 
trast to  the  simplicity  of  the  tomb  of  the  great  founder  of  the 
family.  He  is  buried  in  the  church  of  St.  Lorenzo:  a  pave- 
ment of  porphyry,  serpentine,  and  other  marbles  covers  the 
tomb,  upon  which  is  inscribed, "  Here  lies  Cosmo  de'  Medici, 
surnamed  by  a  public  decree,  the  Father  of  his  Country.  He 
lived  75  years  3  months  and  20  days."  Such  a  modest 
epitaph  on  the  tomb  of  so  great  a  man,  speaks  more  forcibly 
to  the  feelings  than  the  luxury  and  ornamant  bestowed  upon, 
those  of  his  less  glorious  posterity. 

*  The  bodies  lie  in  a  repository  beneath,  but  the  sarcophagi  are 
inscribed  to  the  memory  of  the  six  first  reigning  dukes  of  the 
Medici  family, — Cosmo  I,  died  1574  —  Francis,  1587  —  Ferdi- 
nand I,  1609  —Cosmo  II,  1620— Ferdinand II,  1670,  — and  Cosmo 
III,  1723. 

f  Sienna,  Fiesole,  Firenze,  Pisa,  Pistoja,  Arezzo,  Volterra,  Cor- 
tona,  San  Sepolero,  Montepulciano,  Pienza,  Cbiusi,  Soana,  Mon- 
talcino,  Massa,  Grosseto;  and  the  arms  of  the  Medici. 


HUMAN   MOSAIC'. 


105 


IHENRIETTA. 

Did  you  see  the  Roman  Mosaic,  aunt1? 


Mosaic  Pavement. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  we  visited  the  principal  manufactory  of  it  in  the 
Vatican.  The  patience  required  in  this  art  is  unbounded. 
The  number  of  shades  of  glass  which  are  employed,  amount 
to  above  18,000,  and,  by  means  of  these,  the  coloring  of  a 
painting  is  imitated  with  the  greatest  accuracy.  The  estab- 
lishment in  the  Vatican  is  solely  employed  in  copying  paint- 
ings for  the  decoration  of  St.  Petejr's. 

ESTHER. 

But,  after  all,  these  mosaics  must  be  very  inferior  to  paint- 
ings. 

MRS.  F. 

True;  and,  compared  with  them,  they  must  always  hold  a 
very  inferior  rank  in  art;  but  then,  mosaic  possesses  the  ad- 


106  ROMAN  MOSAIC. 

vantage  of  being  uninjured  by  damp,  lime,  and  all  the  various 
causes  by  which  painting  is  destroyed;  and  when  we  view 
the  magnificent  copies  of  the  old  masters  which  decorate  St. 
Peter's,  we  cannot  but  value  an  art  by  which  so  many  fine 
works  are  perpetuated,  which  otherwise  would  be  lost  to  suc- 
ceeding ages. 

HENRIETTA. 

In, what  manner  do  they  work  at  it? 

MRS.  F. 

A  slab  of  marble  or  stone  is  taken,  out  of  which  the  artist 
cuts  the  space  which  he  intends  to  fill,  and  encircles  it,  for 
strength,  with  bands  of  iron.  He  then  covers  this  space  with 
a  thick  layer  of  mastic,  in  which  he  places  his  pieces  of  glass, 
according  to  the  design  which  he  is  copying.  When  the 
subject  is  finished,  it  is  all  ground  down  to  a  level  surface, 
and  then  polished. 

ESTHER. 

I  suppose,  mamma,  when  you  were  at  Rome,  you  saw  the 
Roman  pearls  made. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  for  I  always  make  a  point  of  seeing  the  manufactures 
of  every  country  which  I  visit.  The  Roman  pearls  differ  in 
their  composition  from  those  made  in  France,  the  latter  being 
glass  beads  filled  with  wax  and  coated  with  the  silvery  sub- 
stance obtained  from  the  scales  of  the  Bleak  (Cyprinus 
alburnus'). 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  how  are  the  Roman  pearls  made? 


They  are  formed  of  the  purest  alabaster,  which  comes 
principally  from  the  neighborhood  of  Pisa.  The  alabaster 
is  sawn  into  slices,  the  thickness  of  which  is  equal  to  the 
intended  diameter  of  the  pearl.  The  pearl  is  then  made  by 
an  instrument  which  works  something  on  the  principle  of  the 


ARGENTINE.  107 

tool  called  by  our  carpenters  a  centre-bit.  This  tool  pierces 
a  hole  through  the  alabaster,  and  cuts  half  its  thickness  into 
the  shape  of  a  hemisphere:  the  hole  in  the  centre  directs 
where  the  instrument  should  be  placed  on  the  other  side  of 
the  slice  of  alabaster;  and  by  peforming  the  same  opera- 
tion the  sphere  is  completed;  and  the  bead  formed  with  a  hole 
through  it.  The  beads  are  then  strung,  and  rubbed  with  fish 
skin  in  order  to  remove  their  inequalities:  each  bead  is  next 
placed  upon  a  separate  pin  and  dipped  into  wax,  in  order  to 
give  it  a  yellowish  hue;  and  afterwards  they  are  dipped  into  the 
silvery  liquid  which  is  procured  from  the  air  bladder  of  the 
Argentine,*  a  little  fish  which  is  common  in  the  Mediterra- 
nean. These  pearls  have  the  advantage  of  being  less  fragile 
than  those  of  glass, — indeed,  they  may  be  dashed  upon  the 
ground  without  receiving  the  slightest  injury;  and  their  color, 
also,  is  less  likely  to  change  than  those  in  which  the  wax 
remains  exposed  to  the  influence  of  the  atmosphere. 

MARY. 

Did    you  ever  see  the  fish  from  which  they  are  made, 
mamma? 

MRS.  F. 

Frequently;  for  we  often  had  them  for  dinner  at  Rome;  and  so 
charged  are  their  air  bladders  with  this  pearly  substance,  that 
in  rubbing  it  between  our  fingers  they  were  perfectly  coated 
with  silver.  This  fish  is  much  in  request  among  the  Jews  at 
Rome,  who  are  forbidden,  you  know,  by  the  Levitical  law,f 
to  eat  fish  that  have  no  scales;  and  they  therefore  never  touch 
eels,  sepia,  or  other  scaleless  fish,  which  are  eaten  by  the ' 
Italians. 

ESTHER. 

Are  there  many  Jews  living  at  Rome1? 

MRS.  F. 
Yes  a  great  number;  and  they  have  one  particular  part  of 

*  Argentina  'sphyrsena. 

t  Leviticus,  chap.  xi.  ver.  9 — 12.     With  the  ancient  Romans  it  was 
not  lawful  to  use  fish  without  scales  at  the  feasts  of  the  gods. 


108  JEWS  IN  ROME. 

the  city,  where  alone  they  are  permitted  to  dwell.*  No  Jew 
is  allowed  to  be  a  householder  in  Rome;  but  their  permission 
to  remain  in  the  cit)^  is  renewed  every  year,  upon  the  payment 
of  an  annual  tribute.  The  ceremony  attendant  on  this  grant 
is  very  curious,  and  I  was  so  fortunate  as  to  be  a  witness  to 
it  the  last  time  I  was  in  Rome. 

HENRIETTA. 

Pray,  aunt,  tell  us  all  about  it. 


The  form  is  this,  as  nearly  as  I  could  gain  from  what  I 
saw,  and  from  the  answers  given  to  my  inquiries,  as  I  was 
never  able  to  find  any  published  account  of  the  ceremony. — 
A  herald  from  the  Roman  Government  goes  to  the  quarter  of 
the  Jews  eight-and-forty  hours  before  the  commencement  of 
the  Carnival,  and  orders  them  to  leave  Rome  in  four  and 
twenty  hours.  The  Jews  send  three  of  their  Rabbi  to  the 
authorities,  to  ask  if  any  thing  can  be  done,  on  their  part,  to 
revoke  the  mandate.  They  are  told  to  try.  The  three  Rabbi 
then  go  to  the  Palazzo  de'  Conservator!,  in  the  Capitol,  where 
they  are  received  by  three  of  the  Conservatori  to  hear  their 
proposals.  The  Rabbi  present  to  them,  kneeling,  a  large 
nosegay  of  flowers,  in  which  is  enclosed  a  draft  for  the  sum 
appointed  as  a  tribute.  The  chief  Conservator  takes  it  and 
tells  them  they  shall  hear  further  about  it,  and  dismisses 
them  with  the  word  "  And  at,"  accompanied  by  a  kick  with 
his  foot.  The  Conservatori  then  carry  the  Jews'  nosegay  to 
the  chief  Senator  of  Rome,  before  whom  the  deputation  is 
next  summoned.  He  signifies  to  the  Rabbi  that  their  pro- 
posals are  accepted,  and  that  the  Jews  will  be  permitted  to 
remain  in  Rome  another  year.  They  are  then  dismissed; 
the  chief  Senator  orders  the  great  bell  of  the  Capitol  to  be 
rung,  to  announce  that  the  Carnival  has  begun;  and  parades 
the  Corso  and  the  other  principal  streets  of  the  city  in  his  car- 
riage of  state,  accompanied  by  the  Conservatori,  and  the  other 

*  As  they  formerly  were  restricted  in  London  to  the  Old  Jewry. 


PRESECUTION  OF  THE  JEWS.  109 

chief  officers  of  Rome.  The  Jews,  in  addition  to  this  tribute, 
are  required  to  pay  for  all  the  flags  used  in  the  horse  races 
in  the  carnival,  and  also  to  furnish  money  for  the  prizes  which 
are  given;  these  prizes  being  as  an  exemption  from  the  indig- 
nities to  which  they  were  formerly  exposed,  when  they  were 
compelled  to  run  through  the  Corso,  on  the  first  day  of  the 
carnival,  for  the  amusement  of  the  people,  who  assailed  them 
with  every  kind  of  offensive  missile  in  the  most  barbarous 
manner.  So  late  as  to  the  period  of  the  French  dominion, 
when  this  ceremony  of  the  humiliation  of  the  Jews  was  per- 
formed, the  chief  Conservator  used  to  place  his  foot  upon  the 
neck  of  the  chief  Rabbin,  who  was  obliged  to  prostrate  him- 
self before  him;  and  then,  when  the  Conservator  uttered  the 
word  "  Andat,"  he  spumed  away  the  Rabbin  with  a  kick. — 
The  French  abolished  the  wThole  ceremony,  but  Pius  VII  was 
obliged,  on  his  return,  to  restore  it,  though  with  great  reluc- 
tance; but  he  caused  the  ignominious  practice  of  placing  the 
foot  upon  the  Rabbin's  neck  to  be  abolished.  Recent  arrange- 
ments have  also  led  to  the  discontinuance  of  the  kick  of  dis- 
missal; and  when  I  witnessed  the  ceremony,  it  was  no  longer 
given.  Let  us  hope  that  succeeding  years  will  see  the  whole 
ceremony  abolished,  and  that  the  time  for  the  persecution  of 
this  devoted  race  is  fast  drawing  to  a  close. 

ESTHER. 

I  always  feel  the  deepest  interest  in  reading  about  the 
Jews. 


And  so  we  ought.  Moses,  indeed,  was  permitted  to  look 
in  the  glass  of  ages  when  he  foretold  so  minutely  what  has 
happened  to  this  people  for  now  above  3200  years  —  the  de- 
struction of  their  city  and  their  temple — their  country  ravaged 

—  themselves  falling  before  the  sword,  the  famine,  and  the 
pestilence  —  dispirited,  persecuted,  enslaved — driven  from 
their  own  land,  "dispersed  among  all  nations,  left  to  the 
mercy  of  a  world  that  every  where  hated  and  oppressed  them 

—  shattered  in  pieces  like  the  wreck  of  a  vessel  in  a  mighty 

10 


110  PERSECUTION  OF  THE  JEWS. 

storm  —  scattered  over  the  earth,  like  fragments  on  the 
waters,  and,  instead  of  disappearing  or  mingling  with  the 
nations,  remaining  a  perfectly  distinct  people,  in  every  king- 
dom the  same,  retaining  similar  habits  and  customs  in  every 
part  of  the  globe  —  meeting  everywhere  the  same  insult, 
mockery,  and  oppression — finding  no  resting  place  without 
an  enemy  soon  to  dispossess  them  —  multiplying  amidst  all 
their  miseries  —  surviving  their  enemies*  —  beholding  un- 
changed, the  extinction  of  many  nations,  and  the  convulsions 
of  all  —  robbed  of  their  silver  and  of  their  gold,  though  cleav- 
ing to  the  love  of  them  still,  as  the  stumbling  block  of  their 
iniquity  —  often  bereaved  of  their  very  children  —  disjoined 
and  disorganised,  but  uniform  and  unaltered  —  ever  bruised, 
but  never  broken  —  weak,  fearful,  sorrowful,  and  afflicted  — 
often  driven  to  madness  at  the  spectacle  of  their  own  misery 
—  taken  up  in  the  lips  of  the  talkers  —  the  taunt  and  hissing 
and  infamy  of  all  people,  and  continuing  ever,  what  they  are 
to  this  day,  the  sole  proverb  common  to  the  whole  world."  \ 
Such  a  chain  of  prophecy  already  fulfilled,  we  may  look  to 
the  completion  of  all;  how  far  the  agency  of  man  is  bringing 
about  the  designs  of  the  Almighty,  we  can  neither  see  nor 
determine  —  but  the  growing  importance  of  this  outcast  race 
is  daily  increasing.  The  time  for  their  persecution  is  passed 
— their  civil  disabilities  are  gradually  being  removed.  In- 
heriting the  "  riches  of  the  Gentiles,"  the  influence  which 
they  extend  by  their  "  silver  and  gold"  may  be  an  instrument 
towards  their  restoration.  We  cannot  tell  how  far  the  use 
of  human  means  may  be  continued  to  be  employed  in  work- 
ing out  the  fulfilment  of  prophecy.  It  is  not  for  mortal  men 
to  determine  the  counsels  of  God;  but  we  may  rest  assured 
that  the  promise  made  to  Abraham  will  be  fulfilled,  and  that 
succeeding  ages  will  see  "  the  outcasts  of  Israel  gathered  to- 
gether from  the  four  corners  of  the  earth,"  and  brought  into 
the  land  which  their  fathers  possessed.  Then  shall  they  be 

*  The  Egyptian,  Assyrian,  Babylonian,  and  Roman  Empires  have 
disappeared;  the  Persians  alone,  who  restored  them  from  the  Baby- 
lonish captivity,  yet  remain  a  kingdom. 

t  Keith's  Evidence  of  Prophecy. 


FINAL  RESTORATION  OF  THE  JEWS.  Ill 

"  raised  up  as  an  ensign  among  the  nations"  —  their  "  wastes 
shall  be  builded"  —  their  cities  inhabited  —  they  shall  be  no 
more  a  reproach  among  the  people  —  they  shall  be  planted  in 
their  own  land,  aud  shall  repair  the  "  desolations  of  many 
generations."* 

*  See  Deuteronomy,  Isaiah,  Ezekiel,  and  all  the  other  prophets. 


112 
CHAPTER  VII.* 

ON  SOUND. 

SOUND.  BELL  IN  EXHAUSTED    RECEIVER.  SILENCE    IN  ELEVATED 

PARTS  OP  GLOBE.— PISTOL  ON  MONT  BLANC. — METEORS. — DIFFER- 
ENT VELOCITY  OF  SOUND  IN  DIFFERENT  BODIKS. EXPERIMENT 

OF  THE  CRACKED  GLASS  AND  CHAMPAGNE-  —  SOUNDS  AT  NIGHT. — 
ILLUSTRATION  OF  THE  MIRAGE. — ICE  A  CONDUCTOR  OF  SOUND. — 
SEA  FIGHTS. SPEAKING  PIPES. WELL  AT  CARISBROOK. CAST- 
IRON  PIPES  AT  PARIS. NEW  BELL. — ECHO  AT  GIRGENTI. SOUND 

CONVEYED  BY  WATER.  —  ALONG  WOOD,  WIRE,  ETC.  —  VENTRILO- 
QUISM.  SENSIBILITY  OF  THE  HUMAN  EAR. — EAR  OF  DIONYSIUS.  — • 

STATUE  OF  MEMNON. — MUSICAL  ROCKS. — SCIENTIFIC  KNOWLEDGE 
OF  THE  ANCIENT  PRIESTS. 


HENRIETTA. 

AUNT,  I  have  been  calling  to  Mary  these  last  ten  minutes, 
to  tell  her  to  come  in,  as  it  rains,  but  she  will  not  answer 
me. 

MRS.  F. 

Are  you  quite  sure  that  she  hears  yoil1? 

HENRIETTA. 

Perfectly  so;  for  the  other  morning  she  heard  me  very  well 
though  she  was  much  farther  down  the  garden. 

MRS.  F. 
But  perhaps  it  did  not  rain  then. 

HENRIETTA. 

No,  it  did  not;  but  what  difference  would  that  make? 

*  The  first  part  of  this  chapter  is  chiefly  taken  from  the  review  of 
Herschel's  Treatise,  in  vol.  xliv.  of  the  Quarterly  Review. 


BELL  IN  EXHAUSTED  RECEIVER.  113 

MRS.  F. 

Send  an  umbrella  to  Mary,  and  when  she  arrives  I  will 
explain  it  to  you. 

In  a  few  minutes  Mary  returned,  and,  the  party  being 
seated,  Mrs.  Fortescue  began  her  promised  conversation,  by 
asking  who  could  tell  what  is  the  vehicle  by  which  sounds 
are  commonly  conveyed. 

HENRIETTA. 

The  air,  I  suppose. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  by  the  air,  certainly,  that  sounds  are  conveyed;  but 
this  important  fact  was  not  established  until  the  beginning  of 
the  last  century. 

ESTHER. 

And  how  was  it  then  ascertained1? 

MRS.  F. 

By  the  simple  experiment  of  suspending  a  bell  in  a  glass 
vessel;  as  the  air  was  gradually  drawn  out,  the  sound  became 
fainter  and  fainter,  until  the  vessel  was  completely  exhausted, 
when  the  sound  could  no  longer  be  heard.  Upon  re-admit- 
ting the  air,  the  sound  was,  of  course,  again  heard;  and  on 
forcing  more  air  into  the  vessel  than  is  equal  to  the  atmos- 
pheric pressure,  the  loudness  of  the  sound  increased  in  like 
proportion. 

ESTHER. 

Then  now  I  understand  why  such  a  deep  silence  appears 
to  reign  in  the  elevated  parts  of  the  globe.  All  travellers 
who  have  ascended  to  any  considerable  height,  speak  of  the 
universal  stillness  which  pervades. 

FREDERICK. 

How  does  my  aunt's  experiment  account  for  that? 

ESTHER. 

In  this  manner;  — because  the  higher  we  ascend,  the  rarer 
10* 


114  SOUND. 

and  more  pure  the  air;  and,  consequently,  all  sound  becomes 
much  enfeebled;  for,  as  we  have  already  seen,  the  denser  the 
air,  the  louder  the  sound,  and  vice  versa  —  if  there  were  no 
air,  nature  would  be  buried  in  the  deepest  silence. 

MRS.  F. 

De  Saussure  found,  at  the  top  of  Mont  Blanc,  that  the  re- 
port of  a  pistol  was  no  louder  than  a  cracker. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then,  I  suppose,  if  we  were  to  ascend  much  higher,  sound 
would  not  be  heard  at  all? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  it  would;  for,  recollect,  so  long  as  air  exists,  sound 
can  be  conveyed.  Although  very  much  weakened  at  such 
elevations,  yet  it  is  very  evident  that  at  heights,  where  the  air 
must  be  3000  times  rarer  than  on  our  earth,  sounds  are  still 
transmitted. 

ESTHER. 

How  can  that  be  determined? 

MRS.  F. 

From  the  sound  of  meteors  having  been  propagated  down 
to  the  earth.  The  meteor  of  1714,  whose  height  when  it 
passed  across  Italy  was  at  least  38  miles,  made  a  hissing 
noise,  like  that  of  fireworks;  and,  at  Leghorn,  gave  a  loud  re- 
port, like  that  of  a  cannon. 

FREDERICK. 

I  beg  your  pardon  for  interrupting  you,  aunt;  but  how 
could  the  distance  of  a  meteor  be  calculated? 


By  computing  the  interval  of  time  between  the  appearance 
of  its  explosion  in  the  air,  and  the  time  that  the  sound  arrives 
at  the  ear.  If  a  gun  be  discharged  at  a  distance,  you  know 
that  the  flash  precedes  the  report  by  some  seconds;  and  so 
lightning  always  precedes  thunder.  Now,  as  we  know  the 


SOUND.  115 

rate  at  which  sound  travels,  by  observing  the  number  of 
seconds  which  intervene  between  the  flash  and  the  report, 
we  can  always  determine  the  distance. 

FREDERICK. 

At  what  rate  is  sound  conducted  1 

MRS.  F. 

Eleven  hundred  feet  a  second  may  be  estimated  as  a  fair 
average,  but  this  rate  supposes  the  atmosphere  to  be  perfectly 
calm.  If  there  be  wind,  the  velocity  of  the  wind  must  be 
added  to  the  velocity  already  mentioned,  if  the  wind  blows 
from  the  sounding  body  to  the  ear;  or  must  be  subtracted,  if  it 
blows  in  a  contrary  direction. 

But,  to  return  to  meteors.  One  which  appeared  five  years 
after  that  which  I  have  just  mentioned,  emitted  much  louder 
sounds,  which  in  Devonshire  and  Cornwall  resembled  that 
of  a  cannon;  and  the  air  experienced  so  violent  a  concussion, 
as  to  shake  the  windows  and  doors,  and  even  to  throw  a 
looking-glass  out  of  its  frame  and  break  it;  and  these  effects 
were  the  result  of  an  explosion  which  took  place  sixty-seven 
miles  above  the  earth.  With  respect  to  the  point  which  gave 
rise  to  this  conversation,  what  prevented  Mary  from  hearing 
Henrietta  call  her  to-day,  although,  at  another  time,  she  heard 
her,  at  a  greater  distance,  perfectly  well?  The  reason  is  this; 
that  sound,  as  light,  is  but  imperfectly  transmitted  through 
mixed  media.  Fog,  falling  rain,  or  snow,  all  therefore  ob- 
struct its  progress;  for  sound  moves  in  different  velocities  in 
different  bodies.  When  the  medium  through  which  sound  or 
light  passes  is  of  the  same  density,  the  sound  or  light  will  be 
transmitted  with  the  least  loss  and  the  greatest  distinctness; 
but,  if  the  medium  has  different  densities,  or  consists  of  dif- 
ferent bodies  imperfectly  mixed,  or  is  interrupted  by  empty 
spaces,  the  light  or  sound  will  be  either  greatly  diminished 
or  entirely  destroyed.  This  effect,  in  the  case  of  light,  may 
be  seen  if  we  look  through  a  piece  of  cracked  glass;  or  if  we 
add  syrup  to  water  in  a  glass,  and,  before  they  have  quite 
combined,  hold  up  the  glass  to  a  candle,  the  candle  will 


116  SOUND. 

appear  like  a  cloud;  and  the  same  effect  applies  precisely  to 
sound.  Therefore,  if  the  two  media  are  of  different  charac- 
ters, the  one  a  gas,  the  other  a  fluid,  as  in  the  case  of  falling 
rain;  or  the  one  a  gas,  and  the  other  a  solid,  as  in  the  case  of 
falling  or  new-fallen  snow;  the  scattering  and  deadening  of 
the  sound  will  be  still  more  complete. 

ESTHER. 

I  can  tell  you  of  an  experiment  which  will  show  you  this 
very  clearly. 

FREDERICK. 

What  is  it1? 

ESTHER. 

If  a  tall  glass  be  half  filled  with  sparkling  champagne,  or 
any  other  fermented  liquid,  the  glass  cannot  be  made  to  ring, 
by  a  stroke  upon  its  edge,  so  long  as  the  effervescence  con- 
tinues, and  while  the  wine  is  filled  with  air  bubbles;  but,  as 
the  effervescence  subsides,  the  sound  gradually  becomes 
clearer  and  clearer,  until,  at  last,  when  the  air  bubbles  have 
disappeared,  the  glass  rings  as  usual. 

HENRIETTA. 

Let  us  try  this  at  dinner  to-day. 

MRS.  F. 

Humboldt  has  employed  this  interesting  experiment  to  ex- 
plain the  well-known  phenomenon  of  distant  sounds  being 
heard  more  distinctly  at  night  than  at  day. 

ESTHER. 

In  what  manner"? 

MRS.  F. 

In  a  hot  day,  when  warm  currents  ascend  from  the  heated 
ground,  and  mix  with  the  cold  air  above,  of  a  different  den- 
sity, the  atmosphere  is  a  mixed  medium,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
glass  of  champagne. 


SOUND.  117 

ESTHER. 

And  also  as  in  that  of  the  syrup  and  water;  for  the  transpa- 
rency of  the  air,  in  a  hot  day,  is  much  affected,  and  every  ob- 
ject appears,  as  it  were,  in  motion. 

MRS.  F. 

At  midnight,  on  the  contrary,  the  air  is  transparent  and  of 
a  uniform  density,  and  more  fit  to  transmit  sounds  to  the  ear 
without  any  interruption. 

ESTHER. 

The  syrup  and  water  is  a  good  illustration  of  the  mirage  of 
the  desert. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  but,  I  presume  that  you  are  all  well  acquainted  with 
this  phenomenon  and  its  causes,  and,  as  I  have  already  ob- 
served, the  points  of  resemblance  between  the  nature  of  light 
and  sound  are  numerous;  but,  I  was  telling  you  that  falling 
or  new-fallen  snow  obstructs  sound;  the  very  opposite  effect 
is  produced  by  hardened  snow,  water,  or  ice.  Of  this,  I  can 
give  you  some  curious  examples. 

HENRIETTA. 

Pray  do. 

MRS.  F. 

Lieutenant  Forster  conversed  with  a  man  across  the  ice  of 
Port  Bowen  harbour,  a  distance  of  about  a  mile  and  a  quar- 
ter; and  Major  Denham  gives  his  authority,  that  the  human 
voice  was  heard  at  Gibraltar,  at  a  distance  of  ten  miles. 
When  the  ground  is  dry  and  hard,  or  rests  upon  a  continuous 
stratum  of  rock,  sound  is  propagated  to  a  much  greater  dis- 
tance: hence  the  practice  in  many  countries  of  ascertaining 
the  approach  of  horsemen  by  applying  the  ear  to  the  ground. 
The  sound  of  cannon  has  been  heard  at  distances  of  120  to 
200  miles. 

MARV. 
Oh!  mamma,  that  is  far  indeed;  when  did  it  happen1? 


811  SOUND. 


It  is  stated  upon  the  authority  of  Doctor  Clark,  who  heard 
the  sound  of  a  sea-fight  at  a  distance  of  130  miles;  and  the 
cannonade  of  a  naval  engagement  in  1672,  between  the 
Dutch  and  the  English,  was  heard  across  England  as  far  as 
Shrewsbury,  and  even  in  Wales,  a  distance  of  above  200 
miles. 

FREDERICK. 

I  have  often  seen  in  shops  a  speaking-pipe,  by  means  of 
which  people  give  directions  to  others  below. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  and,  of  course,  you  understand  the  principle  of  its 
invention.  The  difficulty  in  transmitting  sounds  arises  from 
sound  spreading  and  losing  itself  in  the  surrounding  air: 
confine  it,  and  you  can  convey  it  to  an  immense  distance. 

ESTHER. 

When  you  took  us  last  year  to  see  Carisbrook  Castle,  I 
recollect  that  I  dropt  a  pin  down  the  well,  and  we  all  heard 
it  distinctly  strike  against  the  water,  though  the  well  is  210 
feet  deep. 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  cast-iron  water  pipe  at  Paris,  the  lowest  whisper  at 
one  end;  is  distinctly  heard  at  the  other,  a  distance  of  3120 
feet, 

ESTHER. 

Is  the  pipe  straight? 

MRS.  F. 

It  has  only  two  bendings,  which  are  near  the  middle.  A 
pistol  fired  at  one  end,  blew  out  a  candle  at  the  other.  But 
have  you  heard  of  the  newly  invented  bell?  " 

HENRIETTA. 

No,  aunt. 


SOUND.  119 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  formed  of  a  wooden  or  tin  tube  with  a  small  piston  at 
each  end.  By  pushing  in  one  piston,  the  air  in  the  tube  con- 
veys the  effect  to  the  piston  at  the  other  end,  which  strikes 
against  a  bell;  this  piston  being,  as  it  were,  the  clapper  on 
the  outside  of  the  bell. 

FREDERICK. 

How  ingenious! 

MRS.  F. 

The  next  point  to  be  considered  is  the  phenomenon  of 
reflected  sounds  or  echoes,  some  of  which  are  hardly  credible. 
Sound  is  reflected  in  the  same  manner  as  light. 

ESTHER. 

The  angle  of  reflection  being  equal  to  the  angle  of  inci- 
dence. 

MRS.  F. 

Or  to  speak  in  less  philosophical,  but  perhaps  more  intelli- 
gible terms,  the  angle  by  which  light  or  sound  is  reflected 
back  from  an  even  surface,  is  exactly  equal  to  that  by  which 
it  is  received. 

-      HENRIETTA. 

I  have  heard  of  an  echo  which  repeats  sixty  times. 

ESTHER. 

That  is  at  the  Marquis  Simonetta's  villa  near  Milan,  and 
has  been  described  by  Addison. 

MRS.  F. 

Bat  in  some  travels  in  Sicily,  which  I  was  reading  yester- 
day, I  met  with  a  curious  circumstance,  which  you  shall  hear. 
"  In  the  cathedral  of  Gergenti.  in  Sicily  (the  ancient  Agrigen- 
tum),  the  slightest  whisper  is  borne  with  perfect  distinctness 
from  the  great  western  door  to  the  cornice  behind  the  high  altar, 
a  distance  of  250  feet.  By  a  most  unlucky  coincidence,  the 
precise  point  of  divergence  near  the  door,  was  chosen  for  the 


120  SOUND. 

place  of  the  confessional;  and  a  person,  by  placing  himself 
in  the  opposite  point,  distinctly  heard  every  thing  which  was 
said  in  the  confessional.  Secrets  never  intended  for  the  pub- 
lic ear  thus  became  known,  to  the  dismay  of  the  confessors, 
and  the  amusement  of  the  people,  until  at  last,  a  listener 
discovered  the  secret,  and  the  confessional  was  removed."* 

ESTHER. 

How  disagreeable  an  echo  is,  in  a  room  where  people  are 
singing. 

MRS.  F. 

In  a  small  room  an  echo  strengthens  the  voice,  because  it 
is  so  soon  reflected  back  from  the  walls  that  the  echo  is  not 
distinguished  from  the  original  sound;  but,  in  large  buildings 
such  as  cathedrals,  where  the  original  sound  and  the  echo  are 
distinctly  separated,  the  effect  is  very  disagreeable.  I  do  not 
call  your  attention  to  harmonic  sounds,  for  the  subject  is  too 
long  and  too  difficult  for  present  discussion. 

FREDERICK. 

Is  sound  easily  conveyed  under  water? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  with  great  velocity.  It  travels  about  9000  feet  in 
three  seconds,  when  the  temperature  of  the  water  is  at  62° 
Fahrenheit;  and  in  the  Lake  of  Geneva,  some  experiments 
were  made,  which  shows  that  it  travels  4708  feet  a  second 
when  the  temperature  is  at  46°. 

FREDERICK. 

Aunt,  the  boys  at  school  have  often  puzzled  me,  by  tap- 
ping with  the  head  of  a  pin  at  one  end  of  a  log  of  timber,  when 
I  heard  the  sound  distinctly  although  I  was  placed  at  the 
other.  How  is  that  accounted  for? 

MRS.  F. 
By  the  property  which  solid  bodies  possess  of  transmitting 

*  Travels  through  Sicily  in  1824,  by  a  Naval  Officer. 


SOUND.  121 

sound  with  great  facility  and  distinctness.   Two  Danish  phi- 
losophers* have  shown  this  by  a  curious  experiment. 


What  is  it? 

MRS.  F.  v 

Having  stretched  a  metallic  wire  600  feet  long,  in  a  hori- 
zontal direction,  they  suspended  at  one  end  a  plate  of  sono- 
rous metal;  and  when  this  was  slightly  struck,  the  auditor, 
at  the  other  end,  with  the  wire  in  his  teeth,  heard,  at  every 
stroke,  two  distinct  sounds,  one  conveyed  almost  instantly 
along  the  wire,  and  the  other  transmitted  more  slowly 
through  the  air.  By  some  experiments  made  in  the  pipes  of 
Paris,  it  was  ascertained,  that  sound  travels  along  cast-iron 
about  10 J  times  quicker  than  in  air.  Glass,  iron,  and  woods 
are  the  solids  which  convey  it  with  the  greatest  velocity.  | 
There  are  several  other  curious  points  connected  with  sounds, 
such  as  ventriloquism,  &c.,  which  I  must  leave  for  the 
present. 

FREDERICK. 

Do  ventriloquists  really  speak  from  their  stomachs] 

,  MRS.  F. 

No;  I  believe  it  is  now  generally  agreed  that  all  these 
sounds  are  practised  in  the  throat. 

ESTHER. 

In  what,  then,  does  the  art  of  ventriloquism  consist? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  founded  upon  that  property  of  sound,  by  virtue  of 
which,  the  human  ear  is  unable  to  judge  with  any  accuracy 
of  the  direction  in  which  sounds  reach  it.  The  art,  then, 
consists  in  the  power  of  imitating  sounds,  not  only  in  their 
ordinary  character,  but  as  modified  by  distance,  obstruction, 

*  Messrs.  Herliold  and  Rafn.          f  About  18,530  feet  a  second. 
11 


122  SOUND. 

and  other  causes,  and  also,  in  the  power  of  executing  these 
imitations  by  muscular  exertions  which  cannot  be  seen  by 
the  spectators.  These  sounds,  then,  are  produced  by  the 
muscles  of  the  throat,  assisted  by  the  action  of  the  tongue 
upon  the  palate,  the  teeth,  and  the  inside  of  the  lips  —  all  of 
them  being  movements  perfectly  compatible  with  the  abso- 
lute expression  of  silence  in  the  countenance,  and  which  may 
be  performed  without  the  movement  of  the  lips  themselves. 


But,  how  does  the  ventriloquist  contrive  to  give  the  voice 
the  effect  of  proceeding  from  the  direction  he  requires] 

MRS.  F. 

If  you  observe  a  ventriloquist,  you  will  perceive  that  he 
always  manages  to  place  himself  in  the  same  direction  as 
that  in  which  he  wishes  the  sound  to  come  from.  If  it  be  a 
watchman  in  the  street,  that  he  attempts  to  represent,  he  will 
station  himself  at  the  window  whence  the  sound  of  the  real 
watchman  would  have  entered;  or,  if  he  pretends  to  make  a 
child  sing,  he  will  place  his  head  as  near  as  possible  to  the 
child's  chest,  in  order  to  assimilate  more  closely  the  real  and 
fictitious  direction  of  the  sound. 

ESTHER. 

Then  were  he,  in  the  first  case,  to  place  himself  at  a  win- 
dow on  the  opposite  side  of  the  room,  or,  in  the  other,  to 
sing  six  or  eight  feet  from  the  child,  he  would  soon  be  de- 
tected. 

MRS.  F. 

Exactly  so.  It  is  curious  to  find  how  acutely  sensible  is 
the  human  ear.  Mons.  Savart,  who  has  been  engaged  in  ex- 
periments on  its  sensibility,  has  ascertained  that  this  organ 
is  capable  of  appreciating  sounds  which  arise  from  about 
42,000  vibrations  in  a  second;  and,  consequently,  that  we  can 
hear  a  sound  which  lasts  only  the  24,000th  part  of  a  second. 

FREDERICK. 

Talking  of  sound,  aunt,  I  have  heard  that  the  famous  ear 


DIONVSIUS'S  EAR.  123 

of  Dionysius  is  still   to  be  seen  at  Syracuse.      Is  that  the 
case? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  so;  at  least,  there  is  a  cavern,  adjoining  the  stone 
quarries,  which  bears  the  name.  This  tradition  is  believed 
by  all  the  Syracusans,  and  the  cave  is  certainly  constructed 
according  to  the  resemblance  of  an  ear,  and  is  endowed  with 
some  extraordinary  properties  of  sound.  But  the  story  rests 
upon  no  historical  evidence  whatever.  This  cavern  is  about 
183  feet  long,  70  high,  and  varies  in  width  from  16  to  30  feet. 
The  sides  slope  gradually  to  the  summit,  and  terminate  by  a 
narrow  channel,  decreasing  to  about  20  inches,  which  com- 
municates with  what  is  called,  the  secret  chamber  of  Diony- 
sius. The  power  of  the  lower  cavern  in  conveying  sound,  is 
certainly  great,  a  whisper  being  easily  heard;  and  the  full 
voice  reverberates  so  strongly,  that  it  is  almost  drowned  by  the 
echoes,  and  if  several  persons  speak  at  the  same  time,  they 
are  quite  unintelligible.  A  bugle  horn  or  flute  is  multiplied 
almost  into  a  band  of  music;  the  firing  of  a  pistol  sounds  like 
the  report  of  a  cannon,  and  lasts  ten  seconds;  and  the  tearing 
of  a  piece  of  paper  is  distinctly  heard,  from  one  end  of 
the  cavern  to  the  other.  But  there  appears  to  have  been 
no  access  to  the  secret  chamber,  .except  the  almost  inacces- 
sible one,  70  feet  from  the  ground,  by  which  travellers,  at 
present,  enter  by  a  rope  and  pulley;  and  though  the  design  of 
this  curious  cavern  will  probably  always  remain  a  mystery, 
yet  it  is  more  likely  to  have  been  formed  as  an  experiment  in 
acoustics  by  some  ingenious  mechanic,  than  to  have  been 
constructed  by  the  order  of  Dionysius,  whose  character  appears 
to  have  been  much  misrepresented  by  party  writers.* 

ESTHER. 

One  thing  more,  mamma,  before  we  finish.  Will  you  ex- 
plain to  us  the  nature  of  the  sounds  which  issued  from  the 
celebrated  statue  of  Memnon?  ' ,"'v 

MRS.  F. 

Until  very  lately,  they  were  attributed  to  natural  causes, 
*  Hughes's  Travels  in  Greece  and  Albania. 


124  MUSICAL  ROCKS. 

and  were  supposed  to  have  been  occasioned  by  the  transmis- 
sion of  rarefied  air  through  the  crevices  of  a  sonorous  stone, 
like  many  other  instances  which  exist  of  a  similar  phenomenon. 
The  scientific  men  who  accompanied  the  French  expedition 
into  Egypt  heard,  at  sunrise,  in  a  monument  of  granite  in  the 
palace  of  Karnac,  a  noise  resembling  the  breaking  of  a  string, 
which  is  the  very  expression  used  by  Pausanias  to  describe 
the  sound  of  the  Memnon.  De  Humboldt  speaks  in  the  Ori- 
noco of  musical  rocks  (loxas  de  mustca*},  which  sounded  at 
sunrise;  and  recent  travellers  have  given  explicit  accounts  of 
rocks  in  Arabia  Petraea  which  also  emit  sounds  at  particular 
hours  of  the  day;  and  indeed  Sir  A.  Smith  asserts,  that  at  six 
o'clock  in  the  morning.  He  heard  very  distinctly  the  sounds 
issue  from  Memnon  which  had  rendered  it  so  famous  in  ancient 
times.  Now,  in  all  these  instances,  the  sound  is  supposed 
to  proceed  from  the  sudden  change  of  temperature  which 
takes  place  at  the  rising  of  the  sun.  The  stones  are  heated 
during  the  day  by  the  action  of  the  sun,  and  the  difference  of 
temperature  between  the  subterraneous  and  the  external  air  at- 
tains its  maximum  (or  greatest  difference)  about  sunrise,  or,  at 
that  moment  which  is  furthest  from  the  period  of  the  greatest 
heat  of  the  preceding  day.  The  sound  therefore  proceeds 
from  the  impulse  of  air  upon  the  stones;  and  the  Egyptian 
priests,  having  observed  the  phenomenon  on  some  rocks  in 
Egypt,  were  supposed  to  have  arranged  the  stones  of  the 
pedestal  of  Memnon  so  as  to  produce  this  singular  effect;  but 
it  now  appears,  from  the  relation  of  Mr.  Wilkinson,  that  on 
ascending  the  statue  he  found  that  there  is  a  stone  in  its  lap, 
which,  upon  being  struck,  emits  a  metallic  sound,  and  which 
might  still  he  made  use  of  to  deceive  the  credulous.  In  the 
block  behind,  is  cut  a  squared  space,  as  if  to  admit  a  person, 
who  might  be  placed  there  to  strike  the  stone,  and  who  would 
lie  concealed  from  the  most  scrutinous  observer  in  the  plain 
below.  Mr.  Wilkinson  is  therefore  convinced  that  this  sound 
was  the  same  that  deceived  the  Roman  visitors,- with  whose 
description  of  it,  it  perfectly  accords. f 

*  Voyage,  vol.  vi.  p.  377.  t  Wilkinson's  Thebes,  p.  97. 


ARTIFICES  OF  THE  PAGAN  PRIESTS.  125 

ESTHER. 

Thank  you,  mamma.  I  suppose  many  of  the  tricks  of  the 
ancient  priests  may  now  be  explained  by  natural  causes.. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  there  seems  to  be  little  doubt  but  that  the  Pagan  priest- 
hood kept  all  the  mysteries  of  science  confined  to  the  recesses 
of  their  temples,  and  employed  them  to  delude,  with  apparent 
miracles,  the  rest  of  mankind,  who,  unsuspicious  of  fraud, 
and  unacquainted  with  the  powers  of  nature,  regarded  as 
supernatural,  that  which  was  the  effect  of  human  agency. — 
In  the  trials  to  which  they  subjected  the  initiated,  or  candi- 
dates for  the  priesthood,  "  we  cannot  mistake  at  first  sight  an 
ingenious  application  of  the  secrets  of  mechanics  and  acoustics; 
the  scientific  illusions  of  optics,  perspective,  and  phantasma- 
goria; different  inventions  belonging  to  hydrostatics  and 
chemistry;  the  skilful  exercise  of  practical  observations  on  the 
habits  and  sensation  of  animals;  lastly,  the  employment  of 
secrets,  used  in  every  age,  by  means  of  which  the  human  frame 
is  preserved  and  rendered  invulnerable  to  the  action  of  fire.* 

ESTHER. 

But  we  find  no  positive  accounts  of  the  knowledge  of  all 
these  sciences  in  the  writings  of  the  ancients? 

MRS.  F. 

No;  because  the  writers  of  antiquity  either  belonged  to  the 
priesthood  and  were  interested  in  perpetuating  the  delusion; 
or,  as  more  frequently  happened,  were  deceived  themselves. 
But  the  effects  speak,  and  oblige  us  to  admit  the  existence  of 
the  causes.  What  the  ancients  state  they  have  done,  we 
possess  the  means  of  doing.  Equally  available  methods 
therefore,  were  known  to  them. 

FREDERICK. 

Thank  you,  aunt;  but  how  are  all  the  wonders  of  the  Cave 
of  Trophonius  accounted  for? 

*  Salverte,  des  Sciences  Occultes  des  Anciens. 
11* 


126  CAVE  OF  TROI'HONIUS. 


That  the  magical  slumbers,  dreams,  and  visions,  which 
were  produced  in  the  Cave  of  Trophonius,  were  the  effect  of 
some  powerful  narcotic  acting  upon  the  body  after  the  mind 
had  been  predisposed  by  a  certain  train  of  ideas,  seems  now 
correctly  supposed;  and  to  some  ingenious  mechanism  may 
be  attributed  the  mystery  of  the  same  cave.  Its  entrance  was 
too  narrow  to  admit  the  passage  of  a  man;  ye%  when  once 
his  knees  had  entered,  the  whole  body  was  rapidly  drawn 
within.  To  the  mechanism  that  acted  upon  the  votary  was 
added,  on  this  occasion,  some  other  which  enlarged  the  open- 
ing.* Thus  the  progress  of  science  enables  us  to  account 
for  many  of  the  supposed  miracles  of  the  Heathens;  and  it  is 
wiser,  therefore,  to  conclude  that  they  possessed  many  of  the 
secrets  of  science,  than  to  accuse  of  falsehood  so  many  ac- 
counts, of  which  the  advancement  of  knowledge  has  caused 
the  wonder  and  impossibility  to  disappear. 

*  Salverte. 


127 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL. 

ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL. — CAPTIVITY  AT  TUNIS. —  TUTOR  TO  CARDINAL 

DE  RETZ. CHANGES  PLACES  WITH  A  GALLEY  SLAVE. SffiURS  DE 

LA    CHARITE. —  PRESIDENT   OF    THE    COUNCIL    OP     CONSCIENCE. — 
SALPETRIERE. — SENDS  SUPPLIES  TO  LORRAINE. — ENPANS  TROUVES. 

—  HIS    DEATH. FOUNDATION     OF    THE    ORPHAN    ASYLUM.  —  ST. 

VINCENT  IS  CANONIZED  BY  THE  POPE. 


"A  favorite  band,  whom  mercy  mild, 
God's  best  lov'd  attribute,  adorned;  whose  gate 
Stood  ever  open  to  the  stranger's  call; 
Who  fed  the  hungry,  to  the  thirsty  lip 
Reach'd  the  friendly  cup;  whose  care  benign 
From  the  rude  blast  secur'd  the  pilgrim's  side; 
Who  heard  the  widow's  tender  tale,  and  shook 
The  shackles  from  the  prisoner's  feet; 
Who  each  endearing  tye,  each  office  knew, 
Of  meek-eyed,  heaven-descended  charity." 


HENRIETTA. 

ESTHER,  what  have  you  been  reading  this  morning1? 

ESTHER. 

A  biography  of  St.  Vincent  de  Paul,  the  founder  of  the 
Hopital  des  Enfans  Trouves  at  Paris,  and  also  of  the  Institu- 
tion of  the  Sceurs  de  la  Charite. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  never  heard  of  him  before.  Will  you  give  me  some  ac- 
count of  his  life? 

ESTHER. 

I  was  going  to  propose  it  for  our  amusement  this  afternoon, 


128  ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL. 

as  it  rains  too  fast  to  go  out.  Mamma  has  kindly  lent  me 
her  notes,  which  I  will  read  to  you,  if  you  will  call  Mary 
and  Frederick,  as  I  should  like  them  both  to  hear  the  biog- 
raphy of  St.  Vincent;  for  no  one  carried  philanthropy  to  the 
extent  which  he  did,  and  his  life  is  a  bright  example  of  the 
good  which  a  simple  individual  may  do  to  his  fellow  crea- 
tures, without  any  assistance  but  that  of  virtue,  and  the  bless- 
ing of  Heaven  upon  his  endeavors. 

Henrietta  having  returned  with  her  cousins,  Esther  began 
her  narrative. 

ESTHER. 

Vincent  de  Paul  was  born  at  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury,* in  the  obscure  village  of  Pouy,  near  Dax,  in  the 
centre  of  those  sandy  tracts  which  are  known  under  the 
name  of  the  Landes. 

HENRIETTA. 

That  is  the  country  where  the  people  walk  upon  stilts,  is  it 
not] 

ESTHER. 

It  is;  for  were  they  not  to  adopt  this  expedient,  they  would  be 
unable  to  traverse  these  sandy  tracts,  where  they  sink  at  every 
step  which  they  take.  But  to  return  to  our  biography. 

His  parents  were  poor  labourers,  and  Vincent  spent  his 
early  years  in  tending  his  father's  flock,  a  fit  preparation  for 
those  pastoral  duties  which  Providence  had  designed  him  to 
perform.  The  house  in  which  he  lived  was  afterwards  con- 
verted into  a  chapel,  which  even  revolutionary  fury  knew  how 
to  respect;  and  near  it,  stands  an  ancient  oak,  under  which, 
tradition  relates,  that  the  youthful  shepherd  loved  to  recline, 
and  which  was  often  perhaps  the  scene  of  his  early  benevolence; 
for,  even  at  that  period  of  his  life,  he  gave  "  according  to  his 
ability,"  and  would  cheerfully  endure  the  calls  of  hunger  in 
order  to  bestow  his  scanty  meal  upon  the  first  beggar  whom 

*  In  1574. 


ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL.  129 

he  met.  His  early  promise  induced  his  father  to  educate  him 
for  the  church;  arid  he  was  admitted,  at  the  age  of  twenty, 
into  ecclesiastical  orders.  In  1605,  he  was  taken  prisoner  by 
a  pirate,  when  on  a  voyage  from  Narbonne  to  Marseilles;  and 
carried  as  a  slave  to  Tunis.  After  having  been  three  times  sold 
in  the  public  market,  Vincent  at  last  became  the  property  of  a 
renegade,  upon  whom  his  conversation,  his  patience,  and  his 
resignation  produced  such  a  change,  that  he  repented  of  his 
apostacy,  and  was  anxious  to  escape  from  Tunis  with  Vincent. 
In  the  middle  of  the  night,  in  a  frail  boat,  without  compass  and 
without  a  pilot,  these  two  men  set  sail  to  traverse  the  Mediter- 
ranean; but  Providence  guided  their  bark,  and  they  reached 
France  in  safety;  and  Vincent  had  soon  afterwards  the  joy  of 
seeing  his  renegade  companion  again  admitted  into  the  church 
which  he  had  forsaken.  Nor  was  he,  in  after  life,  unmindful  of 
the  lesson  taught  him  by  the  rigors  of  his  three  years'  captivity. 
After  having  sent  a  large  sum  to  redeem  his  successors  in 
misfortune,  and  having  founded  an  hospital  for  them  within 
the  walls  of  Algiers,  he  established  a  permanent  fund  for  the 
redemption  of  the  slaves,  and  sent  them  colonies  of  mission- 
aries to  confirm  and  strengthen  their  faith  during  their  contin- 
uance in  bondage.  Hearing  that  the  parish  of  Chatillon 
was  without  a  pastor,  it  having  been  three  times  refused  in 
one  year,  in  consequence  of  the  poorness  of  its  endowment, 
Vincent  directly  applied  for  the  appointment,  and  obtained 
it.  Here  he  had  a  full  opportunity  of  seeing  the  influence  of 
a  conscientious  minister;  and  while  he  gained  the  confidence 
and  affections  of  his  flock,  he  was  able  to  mature  his  plans 
for  the  reformation  of  the  abuses  which  existed  among  the 
clergy.  But  he  was  soon*  called  upon  to  leave'  his  parish 
and  to  take  charge  of  the  three  sons  of  the  Marquis  de  Gondi, 
the  general  of  the  galleys:  one  of  these  pupils  was  the  cele- 
brated Cardinal  de  Retz,  well  known  in  the  war  of  the  Fronde, 
and  who  profited  but  little  from  the  lessons  of  such  a  master, 
although  he  afterwards,  when  in  authority  himself,  sanctioned 
and  protected  all  the  establishments  of  Vincent  de  Paul. 

*  1613. 


130  ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL. 

Though  a  teacher  of  others,  Vincent  did  not  neglect  the 
discipline  of  himself;/ and  his  struggles  with  his  own  infirmi- 
ties have  not  been  left  unrecorded.  Finding  that  in  his  inter- 
course with  the  great,  there  was  a  certain  roughness  in  his 
manners,  he  felt  the  necessity  of  correcting  them.  He  directly, 
as  he  states,  addressed  himself  to  the  Most  High,  and  prayed 
Him  to  change  his  harsh  and  forbidding  manners  and  give 
him  a  gentle  and  benignant  heart.  One  would  imagine  that 
his  prayer  was  heard,  for  his  gentleness  and  affability  became 
afterwards  proverbial. 

During  the  three  years  which  he  passed  in  the  family  of 
the  Marquis  de  Gondi,  Vincent  regular  visited  the  galley 
slaves,  among  whom  he  appears  to  have  been  thrown  by 
Providence,  the  more  to  place  them  under  his  special  protec- 
tion. The  change  which  he  worked  in  the  minds  of  these 
unhappy  men  was  incredible;  he  succeeded  in  making  the 
galleys,  these  dens  of  wickedness,  temples  to  the  living  God, 
whose  praises  now  issued  from  mouths  which  before  were 
filled  with  blasphemy  and  execration. 

The  year  1622  is  remarkable  for  an  act  of  self-devotion,  of 
which  none  but  a  Christian  could  be  capable.  Being  anxious 
to  form  a  just  opinion  of  the ,  actual  state  of  the  galleys, 
Vincent  set  out  for  Marseilles  alone  and  unknown.  As  he 
went  from  one  malefactor  to  another,  and  heard  their  different 
tales  of  crime  and  woe,  there  was  one  man  who  appeared 
more  despairing  than  the  rest,  and  whose  miserable  counte- 
nance excited  his  warmest  sympathy.  Vincent  inquired  into 
the  cause  of  his  despair,  and  learned  that  he  had  been  unjustly 
condemned  for  some  trivial  offence  to  the  galleys,  and  that  he 
had  a  mother,  a  wife,  and  children,  who  were  all  reduced  to 
the  most  abject  misery  by  his  slavery.  Touched  by  his 
misfortunes,  and  knowing  no  other  way  of  remedying  them, 
Vincent  took  the  generous  resolution  of  changing  places  with 
the  criminal.  Like  St.  Paulinus,*  who  sold  himself  to 
redeem  from  captivity  the  son  of  a  poor  widow,  Vincent  (by 
permission  of  the  officers)  placed  himself  in  the  stead  of  the 

*  Bishop  of  Nola— born  353. 


ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL.  131 

young  galley  slave;  with  his  own  hands  fixed  the  chain  round 
himself,  and  then  desired  the  criminal  to  depart  quickly  and 
carry  peace  and  consolation  to  his  afflicted  relations.  How 
long  Vincent  remained  in  his  voluntary  captivity  is  uncertain, 
so  various  are  the  accounts  of  different  writers;  but  it  ap- 
pears that  although  he  had  taken  every  precaution  not  to  be 
recognised,  the  Countess  de  Joigny,  daughter-in-law  to  the 
Marquis  de  Gondi,  being  uneasy  at  his  disappearance,  took 
such  active  measures  to  find  him,  that  he  was  discovered  and 
liberated.  He  ever  after  felt  the  acutest  pain  from  the  irrita- 
tion and  weight  of  his  self-imposed  fetters,  which  were  the 
cause  of  severe  suffering  to  him  to  the  end  of  his  life. — 
Again  did  Vincent,  on  his  liberation,  turn  his  own  sufferings 
to  the  benefit  of  humanity,  and  learn  from  his  own  "  to  weep 
at  others'  woe."  In  prosperity  he  paid  the  debt  of  gratitude 
he  owed  to  Providence,  by  founding  at  Marseilles  an  hospital 
for  the  reception  of-the  galley  slaves.  He  never  would  allude 
to  this  extraordinary  action,  so  anxious  was  he  to  conceal 
his  noble  self-sacrifice;  but  Louis  XIII  immediately  con- 
ferred upon  him  the  appointment  of  Almoner-General  of  the 
Galleys. 

The  rich  establishment  of  St.  Lazarus  was  soon  after  as- 
signed to  him,  in  order  that  he  might  apply  its  revenues  to 
the  relief  and  instruction  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  country. 
Vincent  took  a  year  to  consider  the  proposal,  so  unequal  did 
his  humble  mind  lead  him  to  consider  himself,  to  undertake 
so  responsible  a  stewardship.  He  established  the  congrega- 
tion of  missionaries,  some  of  whom  were  destined  to  extend 
the  gospel  in  distant  regions,  others  to  go  on  home  missions 
into  the  different  provinces  of  France. 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  did  you  not  tell  us  that  he  also  founded  the  establish- 
ment of  the  So3urs  de  la  Charite? 


He  did.     This  is,  indeed,  one  of  the  noblest  institutions  of 
humanity,  and  nothing  but  Christianity  could  lead  the  human 


132  ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL. 

mind  to  so  great  a  sacrifice  as  that  which  is  made  by  these 
humble  servants  of  their  Master.  Their  quiet  unobtrusive 
works  of  charity,  may  be  compared  to  the  gentle  dew  from 
heaven,  which  sinks  secretly  and  silently  into  the  earth, 
which  it  refreshes  with  its  vivifying  influence.  None  were 
admitted  into  the  sisterhood  whose  family  had  not  borne  an 
irreproachable  character  for  several  generations;  and  in  order 
to  preclude  the  possibility  of  any  lingering  feeling  towards 
the  world,  Vincent  required  that  they  should  only  be  re- 
ceived into  the  establishment  after  live  years  of  probation,  so 
that  they  might  enter  the  sisterhood  fully  aware  of  the  ardu- 
ous duties  which  they  undertook;  nor  would  he  then  allow 
them  to  dedicate  themselves  for  more  than  one  year,  but  re- 
quired that  annually  their  vows  should  be  renewed,  so  that 
no  backsliders  or  unwilling  or  lukewarm  servant  should  be 
engaged  in  so  righteous  a  cause.  "  You  will  have,"  he 
said,  "  no  monasteries  but  the  houses  of  the  poor,  no  cloisters 
but  the  streets  of  towns  and  the  rooms  of  hospitals,  no  enclo- 
sure but  obedience,  no  veil  except  a  holy  modesty.  My  in- 
tention is,  that  you  tend  every  infirm  person  as  a  tender 
mother  who  watches  over  an  only  son."  No  duties  are  im- 
posed upon  them  but  the  relief  of  suffering  humanity;  and 
every  moment  is  so  entirely  devoted  to  the  care  of  the 
wretched,  their  lives  are  so  occupied  by  the  exercise  of  works 
of  charity,  that  they  have  no  disposition  for  levity,  but  count 
all  the  most  heavenly  virtues  of  our  nature  as  the  ordinary 
employment  of  life. 

In  1643,  Vincent  was  summoned  to  attend  the  death-bed 
of  Louis  XIII,  who  washed  for  this  holy  man  to  assist  and 
support  him  in  his  last  hour.  According  to  the  desire  of  the 
dying  monarch,  Anne  of  Austria  named  him  President  of  her 
Council  of  Conscience,  an  office  which  gave  him  great  weight 
in  the  nomination  of  the  clergy,  and  in  the  regulation  of  ec- 
clesiastical affairs,  but  he  would  never  accept  any  preferment 
himself;  and,  in  honorable  indigence,  attended  for  ten  years 
the  Council  of  the  Regent,  with  all  the  simplicity  of  a  vil- 
lage pastor. 


ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL.  133 

The  next  great  work  of  St.  Vincent,  of  whom  the  Almighty 
appeared  to  bless  the  undertakings,*  was  the  foundation  of 
the  Salpetriere  Hospital. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  a  singular  name! 

ESTHER. 

It  was  so  called  because  it  was  erected  on  the  site  of  a 
manufactory  for  saltpetre. 

In  Paris  there  were  then  46,000  beggars  reduced  to  the 
most  abject  misery.  Such  an  undertaking  alarmed  even  the 
most  zealous  of  his  coadjutors;  but  Vincent  always  answered 
that,  "the  treasures  of  Providence  were  inexhaustible,  and 
that  distrust  dishonored  God.  Let  us  only  begin,"  he  would 
say,  "  and  God  will  finish."  He  founded  the  Hospital  of 
the  Salpetriere,  which  receives,  in  perpetuity,  6000  persons. 
He  went  to  solicit  assistance  in  his  undertaking  of  the 
Regent;  but  she  excused  herself  upon  the  state  of  the  times, 
and  answered  that  she  had  nothing  left  to  give.  "  And  your 
diamonds,  madam,"  answered  he;  "  does  a  queen  require 
them?"  Anne  immediately  unclasped  her  diamonds  and  gave 
them  to  him,  desiring  him  to  keep  the  secret  of  her  sacrifice. 
"  No,"  exclaimed  Vincent  de  Paul,  "  I  cannot  keep  it;  I 
have  much  good  to  do,  and  it  is  necessary  for  the  interests  of 
the  poor  that  such  an  example  of  charity  should  be  known 
by  the  whole  kingdom." 

Vincent  next  sent  large  supplies  for  the  relief  of  Lorraine, 
which,  during  the  government  of  their  Duke,  Charles  IV, 
was  reduced  to  the  greatest  distress  by  war,  pestilence,  and 
famine.  A  deputation  was  sent  by  this  wretched  province, 
not  to  the  Sovereign,  or  to  the  Ministers  of  State,  but  to  a 
poor  priest  —  to  the  humble  Vincent,  whom  they  designated 
in  their  address,  as  steward  of  the  affairs  of  God.  Nor  were 
they  disappointed  in  their  confidence.  For  ten  successive 
years  he  sent  money,  food,  cattle,  clothing,  &c.  to  his  dis- 

*  "  And  look  whatsoever  he  doeth  it  shall  prosper." 
12 


134  ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL. 

tressed  countrymen;  and  so  unbounded  was  his  liberality, 
that,  at  the  termination  of  their  calamities,  a  general  proces- 
sion was  ordered  to  beseech  the  Almighty  to  preserve  the 
life  of  their  benefactor,  and  to  shower  His  choicest  blessings 
upon  the  saviour  of  their  province.  When  the  wars  of  the 
Fronde  afterwards  ravaged  the  other  provinces  of  France, 
they  also  experienced  his  tender  care,  and  he  caused  immense 
sums  of  money  to  be  transmitted  to  them. 

FREDERICK. 

But  where  did  he  get  so  much  wealth  to  distribute,  for  you 
said  that  he  was  very  poor? 


First,  by  the  irresistible  force  of  his  eloquence  and  his  ex- 
ample; by  the  universal  opinion  entertained  of  his  sanctity; 
by  the  universal  confidence  which  he  inspired;  and,  lastly,  by 
means  of  that  holy  assembly  which  met  every  week  in  his 
church  of  St.  Lazare,  to  deliberate  upon  the  wants  of  their 
fellow-creatures,  and  to  adopt  the  best  means  of  relieving 
them.  In  these  assemblies  were  all  the  great  and  virtuous 
of  the  Kingdom — pontiffs,  princes,  magistrates,  the  Regent 
Anne,  of  Austria,  the  Queen  of  Poland,  and  all  the  rich 
and  the  charitable,  who  laid  their  treasures  at  the  feet  of 
Vincent,  confident  that  they  \vould  be  applied  to  the  best 
purposes. 

A  traveller  upon  earth,  a  sojourner,  as  we  all  are,  Vincent 
felt  the  necessity  of  redoubling  his  exertions  as  he  drew 
nearer  the  close  of  his  pilgrimage,  and  his  good  works  mul- 
tiplied in  proportion  as  he  had  the  less  time  to  execute  them. 
The  Foundling  Hospital  next  called  forth  his  generous  exer- 
tions. Returning,  on  one  occasion,  from  a  mission,  Vincent 
found  under  the  walls  of  Paris,  a  wretched  infant,  whose 
limbs  a  beggar  was  on  the  point  of  distorting,  in  order  to 
make  the  little  sufferer  an  object  of  commiseration,  and  con- 
sequently of  gain,  to  its  inhuman  master.  "Barbarian!" 
exclaimed  St.  Vincent,  as  he  rushed  upon  him.  "  I  am  de- 


ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL.  135 

ceived,  for  I  took  you,  at  a  distance,  for  a  human  being." 
Snatching  his  victim  from  him,  Vincent  carried  it  in  his  arms 
through  Paris,  assembled  a  crowd  around  him,  to  whom  he 
related  this  tale  of  horror,  and  conjured  them  to  co-operate 
with  him  in  rescuing  these  helpless  innocents  from  destruc- 
tion. His  appeal  was  heard,  and  he  met  with  the  most  ready 
assistance  and  co-operation:  but  soon  the  number  of  these  de- 
serted infants  became  so  great,  that  all  those  who  had  hith- 
erto assisted  him,  came  to  tell  him  that  they  must  leave  them 
to  their  fate.  Undaunted  by  the  obstacles  which  surrounded 
him,  Vincent  asked  only  for  one  day,  and  mustered  an  ex- 
traordinary assembly  for  the  following  morning.  Vincent 
caused  five  hundred  of  these  poor  orphans  to  be  placed  in  the 
sanctuary  of  his  church,  in  the  arms  of  Sisters  of  Charity. 
He  then  mounted  his  pulpit,  and  addressed  the  assembly  in 
behalf  of  the  infants  they  were  about  to  abandon,  concluding 
with  an  appeal  to  the  female  part  of  his  auditors.  "  Now, 
ladies,  you  have  adopted  these  children;  you  have  become 
their  mothers  after  grace,  since  their  mothers  after  nature 
have  forsaken  them.  Consider  if  you  also  will  abandon  them 
for  ever.  Cease  in  this  moment  to  be  their  mothers,  and 
become  their  judges.  Their  life  and  death  are  in  your  hands. 
I  am  going  to  take  your  votes  and  suffrages.  It  is  time  that 
you  pass  judgment  upon  them.  There  they  are  before  you. 
If  you  continue  your  care  over  them,  they  will  live;  if  you 
desert  them,  they  will  all  die  to-morrow."  The  appeal  was 
not  made  in  vain,  the  cause  of  humanity  had  never  a  greater 
triumph.  This  same  assembly,  wiiich  had  met  resolved  to 
forsake  the  children,  voted  by  acclamation  the  foundation  of 
their  hospital,  and  endowed  it  immediately  with  considerable 
funds  —  so  electrified  were  they  all  by  the  eloquence  of  St. 
Vincent. 

But  his  career  of  usefulness  was  now  drawing  to  a  close. 
The  health  of  St.  Vincent  began  visibly  to  decline;  and 
though  forced  by  the  Archbishop  of  Paris  to  accept  a  carriage 
which  the  Queen  Regent  had  given  to  him,  it  was  with  the 
greatest  difficulty  that  he  could  be  persuaded  to  make  use  of 
it.  He  called  it  always  "  his  shame;"  and  it  was  usually 


136  ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL. 

employed  in  conveying  the  infirm  and  the  sick  whom  he 
met  in  his  road,  to  their  homes  or  to  the  hospitals.  The  last 
four  years  of  his  life  Vincent  was  unable  to  leave  the  house; 
but  he  still  continued  his  superintendence  of  the  poor,  and 
no  work  of  charity  was  entered  upon  .without  his  participa- 
tion. 

After  severe  suffering,  he  died  in  1660,  at  the  age  of  87. 
His  remains  were  attended  to  the  grave  by  all  his  fellow- 
workers  in  charity.  At  the  termination  of  his  obsequies,  the 
Princess  de  Conti  reminded  the  bystanders  that  this  virtuous 
man  was  not  allowed  time  to  mature  a  project  which  he  had 
formed,  of  opening  an  asylum  for  the  orphans  of  poor  artisans. 
She  ended  her  appeal  by  asking  them,  "  if  they  would  leave 
him  one  regret  beyond  the  gravel"  At  these  words,  without 
any  deliberation,  all  decided  unanimously  to  pay  this  last 
tribute  to  his  memory,  and  the  foundation  of  the  Orphan 
Asylum  was  determined  upon  at  his  tomb. 

At  the  head  of  nine  sovereign  princes,  Louis  XIV  asked 
his  canonization;  and  on  obtaining  it,  Louis  XV  ordered  the 
liberation  of  twelve  galley  slaves  at  Marseilles,  who  had  been 
condemned  to  perpetual  labor.  But,  an  old  man,  who  had 
known  Vincent  at  Marseilles,  when  he  heard  of  the  intention 
to  canonize  him,  exclaimed,  "  What!  you  wish  to  canonize 
him!  Oh!  I  knew  him  well  — he  will  never  allow  it;  he  was 
too  humble."  Paris  owes  to  him  the  foundation  of  thirty- 
five  charitable  institutions,  besides  those  which  are  scattered 
all  over  France.  Thus  did  this  humble  apostle  of  humanity 
leave  a  number  of  establishments  more  useful  to  his  country 
than  the  trophied  monuments  of  his  ostentatious  sovereign 
Louis  XIV. 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  Esther;  I  am  sure,  that  we  have  all  been  much 
interested  by  your  biography. 

ESTHER. 

I  am  glad  that  you  have;  but,  recollect  one  thing —  it  is  to 
God,  not  to  man,  that  we  must  ascribe  the  praise.  It  is,  to 


ST.  VINCENT  DE  PAUL.  137 

the  religion  of  our  blessed  Saviour  that  this  great  man  be- 
longed—  it  is  the  spirit  of  Jesus  alone,  which  could  have 
created  such  wonders;  for  nothing  but  the  regenerating  influ- 
ence of  the  Christian  religion,  could  have  produced  such  an 
example  of  holiness,  benevolence,  and  humility. 


12* 


138 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  SUGAR  CANE. 

HARD  AND  SOFT  WATER. —  SUGAR,  HISTORY  OF. —  IDEAS  RESPECTING 

IT. INTRODUCED   INTO     THE     COLONIES.  —  SUGAR     REFINING. 

ALIMENTARY  QUALITIES. BODY  GUARD  OF    THE  KING  OF    COCHIN 

CHINA. — HINDOO  TRADITION. SPECIES  OF  SUGAR  CANE.—  MANNA. 

EARLY  RISING. ANECDOTE  OF  FREDERICK  II. — ECONOMY  OF  TIME. 

—  DESTRUCTION  OF  BOOKS  BY  A  BEETLE. 


"  ESTHER,"  said  Mrs.  Fortescue,  as  the  party  were  seated 
at  the  tea-table,  "  how  very  weak  the  tea  is  this  evening?" 

ESTHER. 

So  it  is,  mamma;  and  I  know  not  how  to  account  for  it,  for 
the  water  was  boiling  when  I  made  the  tea. 

MRS.  F. 

Perhaps,  by  mistake,  they  have  given  us  hard  water. 

HENRIETTA. 

Aunt,  I  often  hear  people  talk  of  hard  and  soft  water.  Will 
you  have  the  kindness  to  explain  to  me  in  what  the  difference 
consists'? 

MRS.  F. 

The  distinction  of  soft  and  hard  water  has  reference  to  its 
greater  or  less  purity.  Spring  and  river  water  are  generally 
more  or  less  contaminated  with  foreign  substances,  while 
rain  water  is  much  more  pure.  Hard  water,  as  you  are 
aware,  will  not  dissolve  soap;  nor  is  it  calculated  for  extract- 
ing the  flavor  of  tea.  This  is  in  consequence  of  the  quantity 
of  sulphate  of  lime  it  contains,  which,  if  you  were  a  chemist, 
you  would  know  decomposes,  or,  as  we  call  it,  curdles  soap, 
separating  the  materials  of  which  it  is  composed. 


HISTORY  OF  SUGAR.  139 

FREDERICK. 

But  what  is  it  that  forms  such  a  crust  sometimes  inside 
the  kettles  or  other  vessels  in  which  water  is  boiled'? 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  carbonate  of  lime,  which  appears  to  be  held  in 
solution  by  an  excess  of  carbonic  acid.  Such  water  is  less 
hard  than  that  which  contains  sulphate  of  lime,  and  becomes 
soft  by  boiling,  when  the  overplus  carbonic  acid  is  dissipated 
by  the  heat,  and  the  pure  carbonate  of  lime  being  precipitated, 
forms  "the  coating  or  incrustation  to  which  you  allude.  The 
quality  of  water  is  also  of  great  consequence  in  brewing,  and 
the  peculiar  flavor  of  the  Burton  and  other  kinds  of  ale,  de- 
pends upon  the  mineral  contents  of  the  water  employed. 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt,  for  this  explanation.  Esther,  give  me 
some  sugar,  if  you  please. 

MRS.  F. 

I  dare  say  some  of  you  can  tell  me  where  sugar  first  came 
from. 

FREDERICK. 

Was  it  not  from  the  West  Indies? 

MRS.  F. 
No,  it  was  imported  into  those  islands. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  pray  tell  us,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

It  appears,  from  a  collection  of  the  best  authorities,  that 
China  was  the  first  country  in  which  sugar  was  cultivated, 
and  its  produce  manufactured.  It  is  tolerably  well  ascertained 
that  the  inhabitants  of  that  country  enjoyed  its  use  two 
thousand  years  before  it  was  known  and  adopted  in  Europe. 

ESTHER. 

When  do  we  first  hear  of  it? 


140 


HISTORY  OF  SUGAR. 


MRS.  F. 

There  is  no  mention  made  of  sugar  in  the  sacred  writings, 
or  in  the  history  of  Egypt  or  Phoenicia.  The  great  physi- 
cians, Theophrastus,  &c.,  are  the  first  who  have  spoken  of  it, 
under  the  name  of  "  Indian  salt;"  and  from  the  descriptions 
given  of  it  by  Pliny  and  Dioscorides,  it  appears,  that  it  was 
produced  only  in  the  form  that  we  now  call  sugar-candy. — 
The  "  Indian  salt"  was  brought  to  Greece  and  Rome  from 
India  within  the  Ganges,  and  Arabia;  but  it  was  not  culti- 
vated in  these  countries.  The  sugar  cane  then  only  grew  in  the 
Islands  of  the  Indian  Archipelago,  in  the  kingdoms  of  Bengal, 
Siam,  &c.;  and  the  sugar  produced  from  it  passed,  with  per- 
fumery, spices  and  other  merchandise,  to  the  countries  on  this 
side  of  the  Ganges.  It  found  its  way  into  Arabia  in  the  13th 
century,  that  being  the  period  when  merchants  first  began  to 
visit  India. 

HENRIETTA. 

Did  the  merchants  know  what  plant  produced  the  sugar? 

MRS.  F. 

The  Indians,  who  carried  sugar  to  Ormus,  informed  the 
merchants  that  they  extracted  it  from  a  reed;  but  this  indefi- 
nite assertion,  divested  of  all  circumstantial  detail,  gave  rise 
to  a  variety  of  speculations  respecting  a  plant  which  yielded 
so  extraordinary  a  product.*  Some  thought  it  a  kind  of 
honey  which  formed  itself  without  the  assistance  of  bees; 
others  considered  it  as  a  shower  from  heaven  which  fell  upon 

*  On  the  strength  of  this  information,  the  Asiatics  on  this  side  the 
Ganges  sought  among  their  reeds  for  one  which  yielded  so  precious 
a  production,  and  found  a  kind  of  Bamboo  (called  Jtfambu),  which 
gave  a  white  spongy  concretion  somewhat  similar  in  taste  to  sugar. 
The  Arabians  also  strove  to  find  sugar  in  their  country,  and  the  con- 
crete juice  of  a  kind  of  Dogsbane  (Jlpocynum),  known  to  them  by 
the  name  of  Jllhasser,  they  called  sugar.  Hence  Avicennes  speaks 
of  three  sorts  of  sugary  Zucca  arundineum,  which  is  the  Indian  salt, 
or  our  sugar-candy,  the  Zuccar  mambu,  or  Tabaxir  of  the  Persians; 
and  Alhcifser  Zuccar  of  the  Arabians. 


HISTORY  OF  SUGAR.  141 

the  leaves  of  the  reed;  while  others  again  imagined  it  was 
the  concretion  of  the  reed,  formed  in  the  manner  of  gum. 

ESTHER. 
When  did  they  first  find  out  the  truth  respecting  hi 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  year  1250,  when  all  these  fanciful  speculations  were 
put  an  end  to,  by  a  Venetian  traveller. 

HENRIETTA. 

Oh!  that  must  be  Marco  Polo,  about  whom  you  were  telling 
us  some  weeks  since.* 

MRS.  F. 

It  was  so.  The  merchants,  who  before  that  period,  had 
only  gone  to  Ormus,  now  emboldened  by  his  example,  exten- 
ded their  voyages,  and  brought  away  the  sugar-cane  and  the 
silk-worm.  The  story  of  the  latter  being  concealed  in  a  reed, 
you  all  know.  Arabia  Felix  was  the  first  nursery  of  these 
productions,  whence  they  passed  into  Nubia,  Ethiopia,  and 
Egypt,  where  sugar  was  soon  made  in  great  abundance. 


Sugar-cane. 

HENRIETTA. 

Where  was  it  next  sent  to! 

*  See  chap. 


142  \      HISTORY  OF  SUGAR. 

MRS.  F. 

On  the  discovery  of  Madeira,  in  1420,  Don  Henry  intro- 
duced the  sugar-cane  into  that  island,  from  Sicily,  where,  as 
well  as  in  the  Canaries,  it  was  cultivated  with  success;  and 
when  Columbus  discovered  the  New  World,  Pierre  d'Etienne 
took  the  sugar-cane  to  Hispaniola,  where  its  cultivation 
extended  with  such  rapidity,  and  the  revenues  it  brought  in 
were  so  considerable,  that  we  are  told  the  cost  of  the  palaces  of 
Madrid  and  Toledo,  built  by  Charles  the  Fifth,  was  defrayed 
by  the  proceeds  of  the  port  duties  on  the  sugar  imported  from 
Hispaniola. 

ESTHER. 

The  sugar-cane  still  exists  in  Sicily,  and  small  plantations 
of  it  are  to  be  seen  at  the  village  of  Avola,  near  Syracuse, 
where  they  are  kept  up  as  objects  of  curiosity.  The  district 
between  Syracuse  and  Catania  was  celebrated  for  sugar-canes 
at  the  time  that  Sicily  was  obliged  to  furnish  one  thousand 
pounds  weight  annually  for  the  Knights  of  Malta.  But,  was 
it  never  cultivated  in  ferny  other  part  of  Europe  except  in 
Sicily]  **7-^ 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  it  was  planted  in  Provence,  but  the  climate  proved 
too  cold.  In  Spain  there  exists  sugar  manufactories,  I  be- 
lieve, even  to  this  day. 

ESTHER. 
How  far  north  may  it  be  cultivated? 

MRS.  F. 

As  high  as  the  40th  degree  of  latitude;  but  the  torrid  zone 
is  most  favorable  for  its  production. 

FREDERICK. 

When  did  our  West  Indian  Islands  begin  to  cultivate  it? 

MRS.  F. 

Sugar-canes  were  transplanted  to  Barbadoes  from  Brazil 
(where  they  had  been  taken  by  the  Spanish  and  the  Portu- 


HISTORY  OF  SUGAR.  143 

guese  settlers)  in  1641,  and  from  that  island  were  sent  to  the 
others. 


But  it  was  not  until  late  that  sugar  was  much  used  in 
England. 


No;  so  late  as  146G,  the  use  of  sugar  in  England  was  con- 
fined to  medicines  and  feasts,  and  it  was  sold  in  apothecaries' 
shops.  Its  scarcity  continued  until  1580,  when  it  was 
brought  from  Brazil  to  Portugal,  and  thence  to  this  country. 
Such  is  the  history  of  the  introduction  of  sugar.  It  now  only 
remains  to  tell  you,  that  the  art  of  extracting  the  sugar  and 
of  refining  it,  among  the  Chinese,  consisted  in  obtaining  it  in 
its  greatest  purity  under  its  crystalline  form,  or  sugar-candy. 
This  art  was  not  brought  from  India  with  the  cane,  and,  con- 
sequently, it  was  some  time  before  a  proper  mode  of  prepar- 
ing it  was  invented;  and  the  first  sugar  produced  was  black, 
and  filled  with  impurities.  At  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury, the  Venetians  introduced  the  art  of  sugar  refining  into 
Europe.  They  first  imitated  the  Chinese  and  purified  the 
coarse  sugar  of  Egypt,  by  refining  it  three  or  four  times  over 
and  selling  it  in  the  shape  of  candy.  They  afterwards 
adopted  the  use  of  cones,  and  sold  refined  sugar  in  the 
foaf.* 

HENRIETTA. 

How  is  sugar  refined? 

MRS.  F. 

That,  Henrietta,  I  must  leave  you  to  ascertain  yourself, 
and  I  will  point  out  to  you  what  books  to  consult  on  the  sub- 
ject of  the  manufacture  of  sugar;  its  refining,  claying,  &c.; 
but,  as  1  have  often  told  you,  my  object  in  thus  conversing 
with  you,  is  not  to  save  you  the  trouble  of  reading,  but  rather 
to  stimulate  you  with  an  additional  desire  for  it;  and,  there- 

*  Sugar  refining;  was  first  practised  in  England  in  1544. 


144  HISTORY  OF  SUGAR. 

fore,  I  often  only  allude  to  points  upon  which  you  probably 
are  ignorant,  purposely  to  lead  you  of  yourself  to  seek  the 
information  you  stand  in  need  of. 

FREDERICK. 

Is  not  sugar  very  wholesome,  aunt1? 

MRS.  F. 

A  French  chemist*  calls  it  "  the  most  perfect  alimentary 
substance  in  nature."  It  has  always  been  esteemed  very 
beneficial,  and  analysis  has  proved,  that  "it  affords  the 
greatest  quantity  of  nourishment,  in  a  given  quantity  of 
matter,  of  any  substance  in  nature. "|  During  the  crop  time 
in  the  West  Indies,  the  negroes  grow  fat  and  flourishing,  and 
the  sickly  among  them  revive  and  recover  their  health.  In 
China  and  in  India,  the  same  beneficial  effects  are  recorded; 
in  the  former  country,  we  are  told  by  Sir  George  Staunton, 
that  many  of  the  slaves  and  idle  persons  are  frequently  miss- 
ing about  the  time  that  the  canes  are  ripe,  hiding  themselves 
and  living  entirely  in  the  plantations. 

FREDERICK. 

And  do  cattle  like  it? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  it  is  not  less  wholesome  to  the  brute  creation.  Horses 
and  cattle  have  subsisted  for  months  at  St.  Domingo  upon 
it  alone;  and,  during  the  crop  time,  when  they  are  fed  upon 
the  cane-tops,  they  become  sleek  and  in  better  condition  than 
at  any  other  time,  though  worked  harder.  In  Cochin  China, 
horses,  buffaloes,  elephants,  and  all  domestic  animals  are 
fattened  upon  the  sugar-cane;  and  the  people  themselves  con- 
sume a  great  quantity  of  sugar. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  do  they  eat  it1? 

MRS.  F. 

Generally  with  their  rice;  and  there  is  little  else  but  these 
*  Dutrone.  t  Dr.  Rush  of  Philadelphia. 


HINDOO  TRADITION.  145 

two  substances  to  be  met  with  as  food  in  all  the  inns:  but 
the  opinion  of  the  fattening  properties  of  sugar  has  given  rise 
to  a  whimsical  law  in  Cochin  China. 

MARY. 

What  is  that,  mamma? 

MRS.  F. 

The  body  guard  of  the  king,  selected  for  purposes  of  pomp 
and  show,  are  allowed  a  sum  of  money,  with  which  they 
must  buy  sugar  and  sugar-canes,  and  they  are  compelled,  by 
law,  to  eat  a  certain  quantity  daily.  This  is  to  preserve  the 
fat  sleek  appearance  of  those  soldiers  who  are  honored  by 
approaching  so  near  the  person  of  the  king;  and  travellers 
relate  that  they  certainly  do  honor  to  their  master  by  their 
handsome  appearance.  There  are  about  five  hundred  of  these 
men,  all  equally  plump  and  well-looking,  who  are  thus  ac- 
tually fattened  upon  sugar. 

Now,  I  believe  that  I  have  told  you  all  that  occurs  to  me 
at  present  respecting  sugar. 

HENRIETTA. 

And  we  are  much  obliged  to  you  for  it,  aunt. 

ESTHER. 

The  Hindoos  have  a  curious  tradition  of  the  manner  in 
which  the  sugar-cane  came  to  their  country,  which  proves  in 
what  high  estimation  it  is  held  by  them. 

MRS.  F. 

I  should  like  to  hear  it. 

ESTHER. 

They  relate  that,  in  very  ancient  times,  a  vessel  belonging 
to  their  country,  chanced  to  leave  one  of  her  crew,  who  was 
suffering  under  severe  illness,  upon  a  desert  island,  at  a  con- 
siderable distance,  in  the  Indian  seas;  and  that  returning  by 
the  same  route,  curiosity  prompted  them  to  inquire  after  the 
fate  of  their  comrade,  when,  to  their  utter  astonishment,  the 
man  presented  himself  before  them,  completely  recovered 
13 


146  SPECIES  OF  SUGAR-CANE. 

from  his  sickness,  and  even  in  a  state  of  more  than  common 
health.  With  eagerness,  they  inquired  for  the  medicine  he 
had  so  successfully  used,  upon  which  he  acquainted  them 
that  he  had  subsisted,  from  the  time  of  their  departure,  solely 
upon  the  sugar-cane.  Attracted  by  such  a  powerful  recom- 
mendation, the  precious  plant  was  carefully  transplanted,  and 
cultivated  in  their  own  country.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  Esther,  for  your  story.  Is  there  more  than 
one  kind  of  sugar-cane? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  there  are  several  species  or  varieties,  of  which  the 
old  Creole  cane,  the  cane  of  Otaheite  (or  Bourbon  cane),  and 
the  Violet  or  Batavian  cane,  are  the  principal. 

ESTHER. 

By  the  old  Creole  cane,  I  suppose,  mamma,  you  mean  that 
which  was  introduced  from  Sicily  to  Madeira,  the  Canaries 
and  the  West  Indies. f 

MRS.  F. 

Exactly  so;  for  the  cane  of  Otaheite,  we  are  indebted  to 
the  voyages  of  Bougainville,  Cook,  and  Bligh.  It  is  consi- 
dered as  one  third  more  productive  than  the  common  cane; 
is  taller,  thicker,  and  altogether  more  luxuriant  in  its  vegeta- 
tion. Bougainville  transported  it  to  the  Isle  of  France, 
whence  it  passed  to  Cayenne,  Martinique,  and  since  1792,  to 
the  other  Antilles.  The  third  kind  is  the  violet  cane,  and  is 
purplish  in  its  foliage;  it  is  a  native  of  Java,  and  is,  I  believe, 
chiefly  preferred  in  the  fabrication  of  rum. 

ESTHER. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  ancients  should  have  thought 
sugar  to  have  been  a  concretion  on  the  outside  of  a  tree,  for 

*  Porter  on  the  Sugar  Cane,  from  which  work  the  above  account 
is  chiefly  taken. 
t  Humboldt. 


MANNA.  147 

they  were  acquainted  with  manna,  which  substance  is  found 
in  that  state. 

MRS.  F. 

But  the  ancients,  though  they  found  manna,  yet  were  unac- 
quainted with  its  real  nature;  for,  being  accustomed  to  find  it 
upon  different  kinds  of  trees,  they  inferred  that  it  was  a  sub- 
stance wholly  foreign  to  the  tree  itself,  an  error  very  easily 
embraced  by  those  who  were  not  aware  that  the  nutritive 
juices  of  trees  are  nearly,  if  not  wholly  the  same. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then,  what  is  manna,  aunt?  for  I  must  confess  that  I  do 
not  know  much  about  it. 

MRS.  F. 

The  manna  of  commerce  is  chiefly  furnished  by  the  flow- 
ering Ash  (Fraxinus  Ornus,}  but  several  other  species*  of  the 
Ash  are  also  employed. 

HENRIETTA. 

From  what  country  does  it  come? 

MRS.  F. 

The  Flowering  Ash  grows  abundantly  in  Calabria,  in 
Sicily,  and  upon  the  highest  and  most  rocky  mountains  of 
Greece,  but  it  is  from  Calabria  that  we  chiefly  derive  manna. 
In  the  months  of  July  and  August,  a  po'rtion  of  the  bark  is 
taken  off,  about  three  inches  long  and  two  inches  wide,  and 
an  incision  is  made  in  the  tree;  the  manna  which  runs  out  is 
collected  in  baskets,  and  goes  by  the  name  of  manna  grossa, 
but,  when  it  is  required  very  fine,  thin  straws  or  bits  of 
shrubs  are  applied  to  the  incision,  so  that  the  manna  in  run- 
ning out,  runs  upon  these  substances,  and  is  collected  in 
regular  tubes,  which  are  termed  by  the  Calabrians  manna  in 
cannoli. 

i 

*  F.  rolundifolia,  excelsior,  and  parviflora.  The  larch,  fir,  orange, 
walnut,  willow,  mulberry,  and  oak,  also  produce  manna. 


148  EARLY  RISING. 

ESTHER. 

At  Briangon,  in  France,  manna  is  said  to  be  collected 
from  all  kinds  of  shrubs,  and  the  inhabitants  observe,  that 
such  summers  as  produce  it,  are  very  fatal  to  the  plants. 
Their  walnut  trees  afford  annually  a  considerable  quantity, 
but,  if  they  happen  to  yield  more  than  ordinary,  they  usually 
perish  the  following  winter.  From  this  it  appears  evident, 
that  manna  is  the  extravasated  juice  of  trees,  and  that  they 
cannot  afford  to  lose  it,  and,  what  confirms  this  idea  is,  their 
secreting  so  much  more  when  the  summers  are  hot.* 

HENRIETTA. 

I  cannot  think,  Esther,  where  you  have  learned  all  these 
things. 

ESTHER. 

Chiefly,  by  reading,  Henrietta. 

HENRIETTA.  :  •'* j^-V 

But  when  do  you  find  time  for  gaining  this  kind  of  infor- 
mation1? You  are  always  with  us  in  our  morning  studies, 
and  walk  and  amuse  yourself  with  us  the  rest  of  the  day. 

ESTHER. 

But,  then,  I  rise  early,  and  have  generally  an  hour  or  two 
before  breakfast. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  wish  I  could  do  the  same;  but,  I  am  always  so  sleepy  in 
the  morning. 

FREDERICK. 

Then  I  will  come  and  awake  you,  Henrietta,  as  the  boys 
do  at  school,  with  a  jug  of  cold  water. 

"  You  would  have  royal  precedent  for  that,"  observed 
Esther,  smiling;  "  but  I  cannot  recommend  the  practice." 

HENRIETTA. 

What  do  you  mean  by  royal,  Esther  1 
*  Medical  Botany. 


ANECDOTE  OF  FREDERICK  II.  14 


I  allude  to  an  anecdote  of  Frederick  the  Great  of  Prussia, 
who  being-  anxious  to  overcome  his  natural  inclination  for 
sleep,  which  interfered  with  his  plans,  first  ordered  his  atten- 
dants to  awake  him  at  four  o'clock,  at  which  .hour  he  intended 
to  leave  his  bed.  They  did  so;  but  Frederick  was  naturally 
fond  of  sleep,  and  therefore  always  begged  for  a  little  more 
time,  which  it  may  easily  be  supposed  he  obtained  without 
difficulty;  and  thus,  instead  of  four,  he  usually  rose  at  six. 
In  vain  he  scolded  and  commanded,  for  the  next  morning 
always  found  him  entreating  for  more  sleep;  and  where  were 
the  attendants  that  could  resist  the  requests  of  a  despotic 
monarch1?  Finally,  determined  to  vanquish  himself  and  his 
nature,  he  commanded  the  person  who  called  him,  under  pain 
of  being  made  a  common  soldier  for  life,  every  morning  to 
put  upon  his  face  a  towel  dipped  in  cold  water.  By  this 
violent  measure,  he  conquered  his  natural  love  of  sleep,  and 
continued  to  rise  at  four  o'clock  till  an  advanced  period  of  his 
fife.* 

MRS.  F. 

Thank  you,  Esther,  for  the  anecdote.  None  but  those  who 
have  felt  its  benefits,  can  be  conscious  of  half  the  advantages 
resulting  from  a  habit  of  rising  early.  Indeed,  I  look  upon 
it,  even  in  a  stronger  point  of  view,  as  a  positive  obligation 
enjoined  upon  us;  inasmuch  as  we  are  commanded  to  redeem 
the  time,  and  not  to  waste  it  in  idleness  and  sloth.  That  it 
is  conducive  to  health  we  all  must  feel;  and,  of  those  persons 
who  have  attained  an  extraordinary  age,  almost  all  have  been 
found  to  have  been  early  risers. f  Morning  is  the  season  of 
devotion;  and  we  have  the  example  of  Him  who  is  our  Law- 
giver and  our  Guide,  in  favor  of  this  practice,  as  we  find  it 
recorded  that  He  rose  up  "  a  great  while  before  it  was  day," 
and  went  out  to  pray4  If  we  only  just  rise  from  our  beds 

*  Lord  Dover's  Frederick  II.         t  Sir  J.  Sinclair. 
$  St.  Mark,  chap.  xxxv.  ver.  1st. 
IS* 


150  EARLY  RISING. 

in  time  to  join  the  family  down  stairs,  the  "  morning  sacrifice" 
is  neglected,  and  we  begin  the  day  by  leaving  undone  that 
which  it  is  our  first  duty  to  perform. 


Seed,  an  old  divine,  beautifully  expresses  this,  in  a  pas- 
sage which  I  will  read  to  you. 

"  Let  us  take  care  that  every  morning,  as  soon  as  we  rise,  we 
lay  hold  on  this  proper  season  of  address,  and  offer  up  to  God 
the  first  fruits  of  our  thoughts,  yet  fresh,  unsullied,  and  serene, 
before  a  busy  swarm  of  vain  images  crowd  in  upon  the 
mind.  When  the  spirits,  just  refreshed  with  sleep,  are  brisk 
and  active,  and  rejoice,  like  that  sun  which  ushers  in  the 
day,  to  run  their  course;  when  all  nature,  just  awakened  into 
being  from  insensibility,  pays  its  early  homage;  then  let  us 
join  in  the  universal  chorus,  who  are  the  only  creatures  in  the 
visible  creation,  capable  of  knowing  to  whom  it  is  ad- 
dressed." 

MRS.  F. 

Thank  you,  Esther,  these  observations  are  most  true,  and 
are  beautifully  expressed.  The  more  seriously  we  reflect,  the 
more  anxious  we  become  to  economise  our  time,  to  "  catch 
the  transient  hour"  while  yet  it  may  be  called  our  own.  As 
a  wise  man  has  justly  observed,  "  Let  us  render  to  ourselves 
a  strict  account  of  every  hour,  that,  having  taken  advantage 
of  the  present  time,  we  may  have  the  less  need  of  the 
future."* 

HENRIETTA. 

Well,  aunt,  I  am  sure  that  I  never  thought  of  it  before  in 
so  serious  a  light. 


But  the  mere  calculation  of  how  many  years  are  addedto  an 
ordinary  life,  by  rising  two  hours  earlier  in  the  morning,  were 
of  itself  sufficient  stirfmlus  for  exertion  to  the  reflective  mind, 
which  feels  how  short  time  is,  for  the  work  of  eternity. 

*  As  quoted  by  Mme.de  St.  Lambert,  in  her  "  Avis  d'une  Mdre  & 
sa  Fille,"  but  she  does  not  name  the  author. 


ECONOMY  OF  TIME.  151 

HENRIETTA. 

I  must  try  to  calculate  that. 

MRS.  F. 

Two  hours  a  day  will  make  730  in  the  year;  estimating  the 
human  life  at  "  threescore  years  and  ten,"  that  will  make 
51,100  hours,  which  reduce  into  days. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  must  do  it  with  my  pencil.  Stop,  that  makes  5  years, 
304  days,  4  hours. 

ESTHER. 

But,  Henrietta,  you  have  estimated  your  day  at  twenty- 
four  hours;  deducting  the  time  of  sleep,  you  should  average 
it  at  sixteen,  so  we  shall  have  a  larger  result  from  your  cal- 
culation. 

MARY. 

It  now  makes  8  years,  273  days,  and  12  hours. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  had  no  idea  that  it  would  have  amounted  to  so  much; 
such  a  calculation  ought  to  be  sufficient  to  prevent  any  one 
from  being  a  sluggard. 

MRS.  F. 

Do  you  know  Thomson's  beautiful  lines  on  early  rising 
beginning, 

"Falsely  luxurious,  will  not  man  awake,"  &c. 

Frederick,  get  the  "  Seasons,"  and  read  them  to  us;  you 
will  find  them  in  "  Summer." 

FREDERICK. 

Yes,  aunt,  here  is  the  passage;  but  look,  what  a  curious 
little  round  hole  this  is,  in  the  cover  of  the  book. 

HENRIETTA. 

So  it  is.  It  is  as  round  and  exact  as  if  it  had  been  pierced 
with  an  awl,  and  it  appears  to  go  half  through  the  book. 


152  ANOBIUM  PERTINAX  AND  A.  STRICTUM. 

MRS.  F. 

This  is  the  work  of  some  little  beetles  (Jlnobium  pertinax 
and  stridum),  which  are  most  destructive  to  libraries.  I  have 
heard  of  a  public  library  which  was  little  frequented,  in  which 
twenty-seven  folio  volumes  were  perforated  in  a  straight  line, 
by  the  same  insect,  in  such  a  manner  that,  by  passing  a  cord 
through  the  hole  made  by  it,  the  twenty-seven  volumes  might 
be  taken  up  at  once.*  Now,  Frederick,  begin  reading. 

*  Kirljy  and  Spence,  vol.  i. 


153 
CHAPTER  X. 

THE  GARDEN. 

ARUNDO  DONAX,  PHRAGMITES,  ARENARIA.  —  LAW  AGAINST  DESTROY- 
ING  THE    BENT. —CALAMUS. — Q.UILL  PENS. REED   USED  BY  THE 

TURKS.  —  USES    OF  THE  REED. INFLUENCE    OF    THE    CHOICE    OF 

FOOD  UPON  THE   CIVILISATION  OF  A  PEOPLE. ROSE  OF  JERICHO. 

— CRUCIFER.E. — COLORS  IN   FLOWERS.  —  NIGHT-SCENTED  PLANTS. 

— NEW  ZEALAND  FLAX. IRIS  TENAX. LINN.EA. — BELLADONNA 

AND  GUERNSEY  LILIES.  —  MRS.  TIGHE's  LINES. — ROSE  OF  PJESTUM. 
—  OTTO  OF  ROSES. —  DOG  ROSE,  —  FRUIT  EATEN  BY  DOGS,  FOXES, 
AND  LIZARDS. — APPLE  OF  SODOM. — STOCK  SEED.  —  BLOOD  OF  ST. 
JANUARIUS. 


"  II  n'y  a  point  de  vicissitudes  pour  les  beautes  immuables  de  la 
nature,  tandis  que  dans  les  revolutions  sanglantes,  les  palais,  les 
colonnes  de  marbre,  les  statues  de  bronze,  les  villes  memes  dispa- 
roissent  en  un  instant,  la  simple  fleur  des  champs,  bravant  tout  ees 
oranges  croit,  brille  et  se  multiplie  toujours." — MADAME  DE 
GESTI.IS. 


HENRIETTA. 

As  I  see,  aunt,  that  you  are  going  into  the  garden,  will 
you  have  the  kindness  to  tell  me  the  name  of  a  plant? 

MRS.  F. 
With  pleasure;  which  is  it? 

HENRIETTA. 

It  is  that  tall  reed,  at  the  end  of  the  lower  border. 

MRS.  F. 
You  are  right  in  supposing  it  to  be  a  reed,  for  it  is  the 


by  this  pi.-, 


saw  mm  ::" 

or  foar  of  the  adjoining  reeds,  so  that  it  Wat  ai 

every  nx&natuin  given  by  the  wind  to  its  sap] 

sots.  r. 

But  there  is  another  species  of  fee  Arando 
of  the  greatest  utility,  the  Mat  grass,  stair,  or 

f_£rw^^k   «r#^^w*«\-      TVifi    i*    4^M»   *tf 


::  .> 


ARUNDO  ARENARI A.  155 

valuable  grasses  for  binding  the  sand  of  the  sea  shore,  and 
raising  those  banks  which,  in  Lancashire,  Norfolk,  and  es- 
pecially in  Holland,  are  the  chief  defence  of  the  country 
against  the  encroachments  of  the  ocean.  These  sand  banks 
are  of  themselves  so  loose,  that  in  dry  weather  the  sand 
would  be  drifted  away  by  the  winds,  and  expose  the  inhabi- 
tants to  frequent  inundations,  but  the  creeping  branching 
roots  of  these  plants  bind  it  together,  and  oppose  an  irresis- 
tible barrier  to  the  ocean. 

ESTHER. 

Is  there  more  than  one  kind  of  grass  employed? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  several;  the  Lyme  grass  (Elymus  arenarius)  is  per- 
haps one  of  the  best  of  all  plants  for  this  purpose;  and  the 
creeping  Fescue  grass  (Festuca  rubrd)  and  the  Sea  Carex  (C. 
arenaria)  also  contribute  to  the  same  end.  The  long  and 
cord-like  roots  of  the  latter  spread  into  the  loose  sand  to  an 
immense  extent,  branching  at  the  extremity,  and  sending  out 
from  the  knots  many  shaggy  fibres.  Indeed,  of  such  impor- 
tance is  the  preservation  of  these  plants,  that  a  town  has 
been  overwhelmed  with  sand,  from  the  cutting  down  of  the 
trees,  and  pulling  up  of  the  grass  in  the  sand  hills;  and  hence 
an  act  was  passed  in  the  reign  of  George  II,  prohibiting  the 
cutting  or  destroying  of  the  starr,  or  bent,  under  very  severe 
penalties.*  Fortunately,  cattle  will  not  touch  the  Arundo 
arenaria,  or  they  probably  would  be  among  its  most  serious 
depredators. 

ESTHER. 

Of  what  reed  was  the  calamus  of  the  ancients  made? 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  not  exactly  known;  they  used  a  reed  split  like  our 
modern  pens  for  writing  upon  parchment  and  papyrus.  The 
style,  as  you  know,  was  employed  for  their  waxen  tablets, 

*  Burns,  vol.  i. 


156  REED  PENS. 

and  t  was  prohibited  in  Italy  at  different  periods,  on  account 
of  its  affording  a  ready  means  of  revenge  to  an  angry  posses- 
sor. It  was  with  a  stylus  that  Cassius  struck  Caesar,  and 
Caligula  caused  an  obnoxious  senator  to  be  massacred  with 
the  same  weapon.  From  stylus  comes  the  Italian  stiletto, 
which  shows  the  double  purpose  to  which  the  instrument 
was  applied.* 


Quill  pens  began  first  to  be  known  in  the  seventh  century, 
though  they  arrived  very  slowly  to  us. 

MRS.  F. 

The  reed  pen  of  the  Turks  is  made  from  Arundo  orientalis; 
but,  with  regard  to  the  reed,  it  has  been  justly  observed,  that 
the  different  uses  to  which  it  has  been  applied,  may  be  said 
to  mark  the  different  periods  in  the  civilisation  of  a  people; 
and  the  Greeks  used  to  say,  that  reeds  had  contributed  to 
subjugate  a  people,  by  furnishing  arrows;  to  soften  manners, 
by  the  charm  of  music;  and  to  develope  their  intelligence,  by 
offering  them  the  instruments  proper  for  the  formation  of 
letters.f 

ESTHER. 

A  most  just  observation. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  singular  to  mark  the  influence  which  a  plant  some- 
times exercises  in  forming  the  habits  of  a  people. 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  the  Guarinis,  for  instance,  of  the  Orinoco,  who  may 
be  said  to  be  almost  parasitic  upon  the  Mauritia  palm  (M. 
Jtexuosa,}  and  who  afford  an  instance  of  the  human  race  iin 
perhaps  the  lowest  state  of  degradation,  its  existence  being 
chained  to  a  single  tree,  like  the  insects  which  can  only  subsist 
upon  certain  parts  of  a  flower.  It  would  appear  that 
Thomson  alludes  to  Mauritia  palm  where  he  says — 

*  Cell's  Pompeiana.  f  Humboldt's  Voyage,  vol.  viii. 


INFLUENCE  OF  FOOD.  157 

Wide  o'er  the  isles  the  brandling  Oronoque 
Rolls  a  brown  deluge,»and  the  native  drives 
To  dwell  aloft  on  lite-sufficing  trees, 
At  once  his  dome,  his  robe,  his  food,  and  arms." 


In  countries  where  man  lives  upon  corn,  which  requires 
much  labour  and  much  ground  in  order  to  bring  it  to  perfection, 
he  congregates  in  villages  and  towns;  but,  in  South  America 
the  isolated  situation  of  the,  cabins,  affords  a  striking  proof 
of  the  fruitfulness  of  nature.  One  acre  of  bananas  yields  more 
than  twelve  times  the  alimentary  substance  contained  in  the 
same  space  of  corn;  thus  the  richness  of  the  soil,  while  it 
multiplies  the  means  of  subsistence,  retards  the  progress  of 
civilisation,  for  each  family  becomes  an  isolated  people,  and, 
consequently,  does  not  make  that  advance  in  knowledge 
which  only  takes  place  when  society  becomes  more  numerous, 
and  mankind  more  intimate. 

ESTHER. 

This  solitary  mode  of  life  must  foster  a  strong  feeling  of 
independence  and  liberty! 

MRS.  F. 

Undoubtedly  it  does;  but,  as  I  before  remarked,  it  is  curious 
to  observe  how  a  series  of  physical  and  moral  causes  should 
occasion  the  choice  of  alimentary  plants  to  influence,  as  it 
does,  at  the  same  time,  three  important  objects  —  the  associa- 
tion or  isolation  of  families,  the  progress  or  retardment  of 
civilisation,  and  the  individual  character  of  the  scenery.* 

FREDERICK. 

Aunt,  what  is  this  small  plant  in  a  pot1? 

MRS.  F. 
It  is  the  celebrated  JRose  of  Jericho. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  never  heard  of  this  plant;  will  you  tell  us  something 
about  it? 

*  Humboldt's  Voyage,  vol.  iii. 
14 


158  ROSE  OF  JERICHO. 

MRS.  F. 

With  pleasure.  The  Rose  of  Jericho  (Jlnastedica  hiero- 
chuntina)  is,  as  you  see,  a  dwarf  plant,  being  only  from  three 
to  four  inches  high.  During  the  period  of  vegetation,  it  is 
green  and  soft,  but  towards  the  end  of  its  life,  the  root  and 
branches  assume  a  ligneous  or  woody  consistency.  The 
branches,  thus  hardened  and  dried,  curve  over  each  other,  so 
as  to  form  an  irregular  ball.  In  this  state,  the  plant  is  rolled 
by  the  winds  in  the  sandy  deserts  of  the  East,  to  which  it  is 
indigenous,  until  chance  throws  it  near  some  humid  spot. — 
Its  branches  then  imbibe  the  water  and  spread  out,  its  capsules 
closed  by  the  drought,  open  their  valves,  and  the  seeds  sow 
themselves  where  they  find  the  moisture  necessary  to  their 
vegetation. 


Anastatica  Hierochuntina. 

ESTHER. 

What  a  beautiful  provision  of  Providence! 

MRS.  F. 

This  hygroscopic  — 

HENRIETTA. 

Oh!  please,  aunt,  stop   and  tell  me  the  meaning  of  that 
word. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  from  the   Greek,  hugros  moist,  and  skopeo  to  view; 
that  is,  the  property  of  perceiving  moisture.     You  probably 


CRUCIFER.®.  159 

have  seen  the  instrument  called  a  hygrometer,  which  is  con- 
structed to  measure  the  degree  of  moisture  in  the  atmosphere. 
But  to  return  to  our  subject,  this  hygroscopic  nature  is  not,  it 
appears,  peculiar  to  the  Rose  of  Jericho,  but  is  also  possessed 
by  other  plants;  and  the  same  quality  has  been  lately  dis- 
covered in  the  capsule  of  the  CEnothera,  or  Evening  Primrose. 
Many  ridiculous  stories  have  been  circulated  respecting  the 
Rose  of  Jericho,  but  they  are  all  destitute  of  foundation, 
except  in  the  curious  property  which  I  have  just  related.* 

MARY. 
Is  the  plant  annual1? 

ESTHER. 

Yes.  It  bears  small  white  flowers,  and  is  one  of  the 
family  of  Oruciferee. 

MRS.  F. 

The  flowers  of  almost  all  this  family  are  either  white  or 
yellow.  The  pretty  annual  Heliophila  is,  I  believe,  the  only 
exotic  genus  which  is  blue;  and  the  Braya  alpina,  and  Jlrabis 
coerulea  of  the  Alps,  the  only  two  blue  species  which  are 
natives  of  Europe. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  do  not  yellow  flowers  sometimes  have  blue  varieties? 

MRS.  F. 

Never.  It  is  an  established  fact,  with  regard  to  the  colors 
of  flowers,  that  an  originally  yellow  flower  may  alter  to  rose, 
red,  or  white,  but  never  to  blue;  and  vice  versa,  a  blue  flower 
will  never  by  cultivation,  become  yellow. f 

HENRIETTA. 

But  there  is  a  yellow  and  a  blue  irisT 

MRS.  F. 
True:  but  they  are  distinct  species,  and  it  is  of  varieties 

*  Art.  Jerose,  in  Diet.  Sciences  Naturelles. 
t  De  Candolle  on  Cruciferw. 


160          ,  NIGHT-SCENTED  PLANTS. 

of  the  same  species  that  we  are  now  speaking;  such  as,  1'or 
instance,  the  little  Polygalia,  (P.  vulgaris,}  which  we  find  of 
white,  lilac,  purple,  and  blue  of  various  shades,  from  the 
ight  to  the  very  dark. 

ESTHER. 

It  is  a  singular  fact,*  that  the  cruciform  plants  are  almost 
entirely  wanting  under  the  tropics,  except  in  the  higher 
regions,  which  are  much  elevated  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 

MRS.  F. 

In  talking  of  the  colors  of  Cruciferse,  we  did  not  allude  to 
the  dull,  dirty  white,  and  lilac  hue  which  exists  among  the 
night-scented  flowers  of  this  family,  such  as  the  night-scented 
Stock  (Matihiola  tristis]  and  Rocket,  (Hesperis  tristis,}  both 
of  which  expand  in  the  evening,  and  shed  a  sweet  perfume 
during  the  night. 

ESTHER. 

But  most  flowers  of  this  color,  have  the  same  smell,  and 
the  same  mode  of  flowering,  such  as  Pelargonium  and  Gladio- 
lus tristis. 


Here  is  a  plant  which  is  likely  to  become  of  some  impor- 
tance, if  its  cultivation  succeeds  in  Ireland. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  it? 

MRS.  F. 

The  New  Zealand  flax  (Phormium  tenax^)  which,  unlike 
other  flax-bearing  plants,  produces  the  flax  from  the  fibres 
of  its  leaves,  instead  of  from  the  stalk.  It  grows  chiefly  in 
moist  and  marshy  soils,  and  attains  from  five  to  seven  feet  in 
height.  In  New  Zealand,  the  plant  is  held  sacred  by  the 
natives;  but  probably  only  from  its  domestic  utility,  as  it  is 
not  employed  in  any  of  their  ceremonies.  The  New  Zeal- 

*  Observed  by  Adanson. 


NEW  ZEALAND  FLAX.  161 

anders  are  well  skilled  in  the  mode  of  preparing1  it;  the  women 
separate  the  silky  fibre  from  the  leaf,  by  means  of  a  shell 
(said  to  be  of  the  oyster  kind,)  and  convert  it  into  netting-, 
clothing,  fishing  lines,  &c.  If  the  cultivation  of  it  in  this 
country  could  ever  be  affected,  and  a  sufficient  quantity 
grown  to  supply  us  with  cordage,  it  would  lead  to  great 
national  advantages,  by  making  us  independent  of  the  Russian 
trade  for  this  article. 


Has  it  been  yet  used  for  cordage? 
MRS.  F. 

It  has  been  manufactured  in  New  Holland,  and  used  by 
the  colonial  whalers  for  their  whale  lines;  and  recent  experi- 
ments prove  how  eminently  it  is  calculated  for  that  purpose.* 
It  appears  that  it  is  the  strongest  of  all  vegetable  fibre;  com- 
pared with  others,  it  is  in  the  following  proportion.  The 
fibre  of  Agave  Americana  breaks  under  a  weight  of  7;  Flax, 
of  11£;  Hemp,  of  16|;  Phormium,  of  23  1-11;  and  Silk,  of  24. 
It  possesses  also  another  advantage,  which  is,  that,  from  its 
brilliant  whiteness  and  satin-like  appearance,  it  does  not 
require  to  undergo  the  process  of  bleaching,  by  which  the 
quality  of  hemp  and  flax  is  materially  injured.  Another  plant 
has  been  recommended  as  better  suited  to  our  climate  than 
the  New  Zealand  Flax,  viz.  the  Iris  tenax,  a  plant  of  Cali- 
fornia, where  the  native  tribes -make  a  fine  cord  from  the 
fibres  of  the  leaves,  of  which  they  weave  their  fishing  nets; 
a  purpose  for  which  it  is  admirably  suited,  on  account  of  its 
buoyancy,  strength  and  durability.  Snares  are  made  of  it, 
for  deer  and  bears,  of  such  strength,  that  one  not  thicker 
than  a  sixteen-thread  line  is  sufficient  to  strangle  the  great 
stag  of  California  (Cervtis  .#/ces),  one  of  the  most  powerful 
animals  of  its  tribe.f 

ESTHER. 

Oh!  mamma,  here  is  our  favorite  Linnsea  borealis  in  bloom. 

*  Bennett's  Wanderings  in  New  South  Wales, 
t  Lindley  in  Botanical  Register. 
14* 


162  BELLADONNA  AND  GUERNSEY  L1LI~ES. 

Look  at  its  delicate  little  pink  flowers  growing  in  pairs,  on 
opposite  sides  of  the  stem:  and,  what  a  pleasant  smell  they 
have! 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  I  have  read  that  at  Drontheim,  and  the  neighboring 
parts,  they  are  made  into  tea  for  medicinal  purposes.  Here, 
Henrietta,  is  another  instance  of  the  modesty  of  the  great  and 
learned.  Linnaeus,  with  the  whole  kingdom  of  Flora  before 
him,  choose  this  humble  plant  to  perpetuate  his  name,  and 
bore  it  over  his  helmet  as  a  crest.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt.  How  beautiful  your  Belladonna  lilies 
are!  and  here  are  the  Guernsey  lilies  also. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  the  Belladonna,  I  find  perfectly  hardy.  I  leave  it  in 
the  open  ground  all  the  winter,  and  it  flowers  finer  every  year. 
The  Guernsey  never  blooms  with  us  the  second  year.  This 
lily  is  said  to  have  been  brought  from  Japan  in  a  ship  which 
was  wrecked  on  the  coast  of  Guernsey,  whence  it  has  been 
naturalised  in  that  Island. 

ESTHER. 

What  beautiful  lines  those  are  of  Mrs.  Tighe  upon  "  the 
Lily,  an  emblem  of  Christian  hope  !"  They  begin  — 

"  How  wither'd,  faded,  seems  the  form 
Of  yon  obscure  unsightly  root,"  &c. 

I  do  not  attempt  to  repeat  them,  for  I  cannot  recollect  them 
sufficiently,  as  the  poem  is  rather  long. 

MRS.  F. 

Frederick,  you  should  know  this  rose,  for  it  is  of  classic 
interest.  It  is  the  Paestan  rose  (Rosa  sempervirens),  which  still 
grows  at  Paestum,  and  I  have  gathered  it  myself  among  the 
ruins  of  three  temples. 

*  Beckmann's  History  of  Inventions. 


OTTO  OF  ROSES.  163 

MARV. 

Which  is  the  species  from  which  the  otto  of  roses  is 
made1? 

MRS.  F. 

Otto  of  roses  is  made  from  the  petals  of  the  hundred- leaved 
rose  (Rosa  centifolia},  which  species  is  also  used  exclusively 
in  the  distillation  of  rose  water.  The  genuine  otto  of  roses 
is  not,  it  is  said,  prepared  by  distillation,  but  by  putting  a 
quantity  of  carefully  picked  rose  leaves  into  a  clean  jar  or  cask, 
with  just  sufficient  water  to  cover  them.  The  vessel  is  then 
set  in  the  sun  for  a  few  days,  and  in  about  a  week  the  otto  (a 
butyraceous  oil)  collects  in  the  form  of  a  scum  upon  the  sur- 
face, and  is  removed  by  a  piece  of  cotton.* 

Roses  are  also  used  in  medicine.  Confection  of  roses  is 
made  of  the  petals  of  the  red  rose  (Rosa  gallica),  and  Conserve 
of  hips  from  the  pulp  of  the  berries  of  the  Dog-rose  (Rosa 
canina}. 

ESTHER. 

I  have  heard  it  said,  that  the  dog-rose  is  so  called  from  its 
fruit  being  eaten  by  dogs. 


So  it  is  asserted;  and  certainly  the  rose  being  called  by  the 
same  name  in  English,  French,  and  Italian,  and  the  hips  being 
also,  I  am  told,  designated,  among  the  Tartars,  by  a  name 
signifying  dog-fruit,  seem  to  bear  out  the  assertion:  at  the  same 
time,  I  must  say,  I  never  heard  of  dogs  eating  them. 

FREDERICK. 

But,  I  have,  aunt;  for  I  have  given  the  hips  of  the  dog-rose 
to  dogs,  and  they  do  not  refuse  to  eat  them,  though  they  did 
not  seem  to  care  much  about  them. 

MRS.  F. 

That  these  animals  are  often  fond  of  fruit,  I  know  by 
experience;  for  I  have  myself  seen  a  dog  gather  the  goose- 

*  Brande's  Manual  of  Pharmacy. 


164 


FRUIT  EATEN  BY  DOGS,  ETC. 


berries  from  a  gooseberry  busb,  and  have  heard  of  another 
who  had  a  similar  taste.  House  dogs  will  eat  strawberries, 
grapes,  and  most  kinds  of  fruits. 


Grapes. 

ESTHER. 

That  foxes  will  eat  grapes,  we  have  the  testimony  of  Scrip- 
ture, where  Solomon  speaks  of  the  "  little  foxes  that  spoil 
the  vines;"*  and  most  travellers  mention  the  depredations 
committed  by  these  animals  among  the  grapes.  Jackals  also, 
will  destroy  whole  vineyards  and  gardens  of  cucumbers;  and 
the  "cottage  in  the  vineyard,"  mentioned  by  Isaiah,f  was 
doubtless  a  shelter  for  the  watchmen,  who  were  obliged  to 
guard  the  vines  from  these  nightly  depredators. 

MRS.  F. 

The  Greek  writers  also  mention  the  havoc  committed  by 
*  Solomon's  Song,  ii.  15.  t  Isaiah,!.  8. 


SOLANUM.  165 

these  animals;  and  Galen  tells  us,  that  the  hunters  used  to 
eat  the  foxes  in  the  autumn,  after  they  had  grown  fat  by  feed- 
ing upon  the  grapes. 

ESTHER. 

And  Theocritus  says,  complaining  of  their  depredations, 
^'1  hate  those  brush-tailed  foxes,  that  each  night 
Spoil  Micon's  vineyards  with  their  deadly  bile." 
MRS.  F. 

The  lizard  is  a  great  depredator  of  the  grapes  in  the  island 
of  Madeira,  where  rats  and  wasps  are  also  very  destructive. 
The  lizard  swarms  in  Madeira,  and  a  traveller  mentions  a 
simple  expedient  by  which  numbers  were  caught.  It  was 
merely  this:  a  brass  kettle  was  placed  upon  the  ground,  into 
which  the  lizards  fell  when  running  about  in  quest  of  food. 
The  smooth  sides  of  the  kettle  prevented  them  from  escaping, 
and  thus  numbers  were  taken  without  any  difficulty.  The 
same  writer  mentions  a  circumstance  which  refers  to  our 
original  conversation  respecting  the  dogs.  It  is  this:  that  in 
the  month  of  September,  when  the  vintage  begins,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  tie  up  all  the  dogs,  these  animals  being  so  fond  of 
grapes,  that  it  is  requisite  to  exclude  them  from  the  vine- 
yards. 

ESTHER. 

Mamma,  this  Solanum  is  at  last  in  bloom. 


Solanum  Sodomeum. 


166  APPLE  OF  SODOM. 

MRS.  F. 

So  it  isr'it  is  interesting  to  me,  because  I  gathered  the  seed 
at  Paestum;  and  this  Solanum  owes  its  specific  name  (Sodo- 
meum}  to  its  being  supposed  to  produce  the  fabled  apples  of 
Sodom,  or  of  the  Dead  Sea,  which  were  fair  without,  and 
within  ashes  and  bitterness.  This  plant  may  well  merit 
such  a  designation;  for  the  fruit  is  round,  of  a  bright  orange 
color,  pleasing  to  the  eye,  but  within  dry  and  husky:  and 
therefore  no  unfit  representative  of 

"  The  apples  on  the  Dead  Sea's  shore, 

All  ashes  to  the  taste,"* 

Or  of  the 

"  Dead  Sea  fruits,  that  tempt  the  eye, 
But  turn  to  ashes  on  the  lips."t 

ESTHER. 

Milton  also  alludes  to  the  apples  of  the  Dead  Sea,  when 
he  says, 

"  Instead  of  fruit, 

Chew'd  bitter  ashes. "$ 

And  Josephus  mentions  them,  in  his  account  of  the  Lake 
Asphaltites,  as  appearing  fit  to  be  eaten,  but,  if  plucked  with 
the  hand,  they  dissolved  into  smoke  and  ashes. 

HENRIETTA. 

Aunt,  how  very  fine  your  stocks  are. 
MRS.  F. 

Yes,  they  are  very  beautiful.  I  have  the  seed  from  Ham- 
burgh. 

ESTHER. 

I  have  heard  that  the  great  secret  in  the  superiority  of  the 

*  Childe  Harold,  iii.  34  f  Moore. 

\  Paradise  Lost,  book  x. 


ST.  JANUARIUS.  167 

German  seed  is,  that  the  gardeners  keep  it  some  years  before 
they  sell  it. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  how  would  that  apply1? 

ESTHER. 

In  this  manner;  that  by  long  keeping,  the  cotyledons  or 
seed-leaves,  destined  to  nourish  the  infant  plant,  become 
dried  and  injured,  and  give  the  less  support  to  it.  This 
checking  vegetation,  restrains  the  over-luxuriancy  of  the 
plant,  which,  instead  of  expanding  itself  in  leaves,  reserves 
its  energies  for  the  perfecting  of  the  flower. 

MRS.  p.- 
Here  is  an  Onosma,  which  is  interesting,  because  I  have 
read  that  it  is  by  some  chemical  preparation  of  this  plant  that 
the  priests  delude  the  Neapolitans,  by  the  supposed  liquefac- 
tion of  the  blood  of  St.  Jamiarius. 

ESTHER. 
In  what  manner,  mammal 

MRS.  F. 

You  are  aware  that,  in  a  public  annual  ceremony  at 
Naples,  the  blood  of  the  saint  becomes  spontaneously  lique- 
fied, and  rises  bubbling  to  the  top  of  the  bottle  which  con- 
tains it.  These  illusions  may  be  effected,  by  reddening  sul- 
phuric ether  with  orchanet  (Onosma),  and  then  saturating  the 
tincture  with  spermaceti;  this  preparation  is  solid  at  ten  de- 
grees above  the  freezing  point,  and  melts  and  boils  at  twenty 
degrees.  To  raise  it  to  the  latter  temperature,  it  is  sufficient 
to  hold  in  the  hand  a  few  minutes  the  phial  which  contains 
it.* 

MARY. 

But  do  the  priests  really  attempt  to  impose  upon  the  people 
by  such  a  deception? 

*  Salverte,  (Jes  Sciences  Occultes  des  Anciens, 


168  ROMAN  CATHOLIC  ERRORS. 


Indeed  they  do.  I  once  witnessed  the  ceremony  myself; 
and  it  is  melancholy  to  see  the  eagerness  with  which  the 
Neapolitans  crowd  round  the  altar  and  kiss  this  relic  of  the 
saint,  which  is  enclosed  in  a  richly  chased  case,  with  a  glass 
on  each  side  of  it,  something  like  a  double  watch-case,  the 
bottle  containing  the  blood,  being  placed  in  the  centre,  and 
viewed  through  the  glasses. 

HENRIETTA. 

Poor  creatures!  how  shocking  it  is  to  think  of  their  super- 
stition. 


But  it  should  excite  our  sorrow  rather  than  our  indignation 
for  "  they  do  err,  not  knowing  Scriptures." 

ESTHER. 

As  Keble  beautifully  expresses  it,  in  one  of  his  hymns,* 
alluding  to  the  Roman  and  Protestant  Churches,  — 

c<  She  mourns  that  tender  hearts  should  bend 

Before  a  meaner  shrine, 
And  upon  saint  or  angel  spend 
The  love  that  should  be  Thine. 

*     _     *          *          *          * 

"And  O!  by  all  the  pangs  and  fears 

Fraternal  spirits  know, 
When  for  an  elder's  shame  the  tears 
Of  wakeful  anguish  flow, 

"  Speak  gently  of  our  sister's  fall; 

Who  knows  but  gentle  love 

May  win  her  at  our  patient  call, 

The  surer  way  to  prove. " 

MRS.  F. 
Let  such  reflections,  therefore,  rather  excite  in  our  mind 

*  Gunpowder  Treason. 


ROMAN  CATHOLIC  ERRORS.  169 

the  most  lively  feelings  of  gratitude  that  our  lot  is  cast  in  a 
better  land,  in  one  where  "  the  true  light  shineth,"  and  which 
alike  removed  from  Pagan  ignorance  and  Romish  errors,  and 
gifted  with  every  facility  of  religious  instruction,  may  be 
truly  designated  as  "  The  vineyard  of  the  Lord." 


15 


170 


CHAPTER  XL 

ON  LICHENS. 

LICHENS.  — OXALIC    ACID. —  TRIPE     DE  ROCHE.  —  ICELAND  MOSS.  — 

REINDEER    MOSS  . CUDBEAR. PERELLE. ORCHILL. LITMUS. 

COCHINEALS —  CARMINE,  &C.  TYRIAN  PURPLE. —  MUREX  AND 

BUCCINUM.  —  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  DYE.  —  FABLE  OF  ITS  DISCOVERY. 

ROYAL    COLOR. HYACINTHINE    CURLS.  MARTAGON    LILY. 

MOLLUSCA. FORMATION    OF    SHELLS.  SEPIA. INDIAN    INK.  

POLYPUS  AND  KRAKEN. —  EIGHT-ARMED  CUTTLEFISH.  —  NAUTILUS. 
—  CHAMA. FINNA  AND  PINNOPHYLAX. 


"  Rocks  sublime 

To  human  art  a  sportive  semblance  bore, 
And  yellow  lichens  color'd  all  the  clime 
Like  moonlight  battlements  and  towers  decay 'd  by  time." 

CAMPBELL. 


ESTHER. 

MAMMA,  when  you  were  telling  us,  the  other  day,  the 
properties  of  the  different  Jllgx,  you  were  so  kind  as  to 
promise  to  describe  the  uses  of  the  other  orders  of  Crypto- 
gamia. 

MRS.  F. 

That  I  will,  with  pleasure,  though  my  cryptogamic  know- 
ledge is  so  limited  that  I  cannot,  I  fear,  give  you  so  full 
an  account  as  I  could  wish.  However,  suppose  we  select 
the  Lichens  for  to-day's  conversation. 

ESTHER. 
Thank  you. 


LICHENS. 


171 


In  the  arts,  and  in  domestic  economy,  many  of  this  order 
are  most  useful.  A  species  of  one  genus  (Variolaria  faginea) 
contains  oxalic  acid  so  largely,  that  it  is  now  employed  in 
France  on  an  extensive  scale  for  its  production.*  Then,  as 
an  article  of  food,  the  lichens  produce  the  Tripe  de  Roche 
(Gyropkora  genus),  which  is  so  much  eaten  by  the  Canadian 
hunters,  and  which  proved  so  serviceable  to  Sir  John  Franklin 
and  his  brave  companions  during  a  season  of  want  to  which  few 
have  been  subjected;  but  it  is  very  bitter  and  nauseous,  and 
can  only  be  employed  in  the  absence  of  more  salutary  food. 


Tripe  de  Roche. 

ESTHER. 
Is  not  the  Iceland  moss  also  a  lichen1? 


Iceland  Moss. 

*  Hooker,  in  vol.  v.  of  English  Flora,  from  which  much  of  this  is 
taken. 


172 


ICELAND  MOSS. 


MRS.  F. 

Yes;  the  Iceland  moss  (Cetraria  Islandica*),  which  we  pro- 
cure principally  from  Norway  and  Iceland,  is  also  abundant 
in  certain  districts  in  Scotland,  but  it  has  never  been  yet  col- 
lected there,  as  an  article  of  commerce.  Independent  of  its 
medicinal  use  in  coughs  and  consumptions,  it  is  also  gathered 
in  Iceland,  in  immense  quantities,  as  an  article  of  common 
food.  The  bitter  quality  being  first  extracted  by  steeping  in 
water,  the  lichen  is  dried,  reduced  to  powder,  and  made  into 
a  cake;  or  it  is  boiled  and  eaten  with  milk,  and  eaten  with 
thankfulness  too,  by  the  poor  natives,  who  confess  "  that  a 
bountiful  Providence  sends  them  bread  out  of  the  very 
stones." 


Reindeer  MOBS. 

The  reindeer  moss  (Cladonia  rangifcrina)  must  also  be 
enumerated  among  the  most  valuable  of  the  lichens.  It  is  an 
inhabitant  of  almost  every  part  of  the  world,  even  of  the 
tropics,  but  in  the  colder  and  arctic  regions,  it  is  most  abun- 
dant. It  is  this  which,  for  the  greater  part  of  the  year,  and 
especially  in  winter,  is  the  support  of  the  vast  herds  of  reindeer 
wherein  consists  all  the  wealth  of  the  Laplander.  No  vegeta- 
ble, Linnaeus  tell  us,  grows  throughout  Lapland  in  such 
abundance  as  this,  especially  in  woods  of  scattered  pines, 
where,  for  very  many  miles  together,  the  surface  of  the  sterile 
soil  is  covered  with  it,  as  with  snow.  On  the  destruction  of 
forests  by  fire,  where  no  other  plant  Avill  find  nutriment,  this 


CUDBEAR.  173 

lichen  springs  up  and  flourishes,  and,   after  a  few    years, 
acquires  its  full  size. 


The  Reindeer. 

Here  the  reindeer  are  pastured:  and  whatever  may  be  the 
depth  of  the  snow  during  the  long  winters  of  that  climate, 
these  creatures  have  the  power  of  penetrating  it,  and  obtain- 
ing their  necessary  food,  by  scraping  away  the  snow  with 
their  hoofs.  The  Laplander  also  feeds  his  reindeer  upon 
Jiltdoria  and  other  succulent  lichens,  which  hang  in  long 
filaments  from  the  trees,  which  he  cuts  down,  in  order  that 
the  reindeer  may  more  easily  get  at  their  favorite  food,  — 
There  now  remains  for  me  to  mention  one  other  use  to  which 
the  lichens  are  applied,  and  that  is,  dyeing,  where  the  color- 
ing matter,  in  which  they  abound,  is  employed  to  great 
advantage.  One  genus  (Evernia  prunastri}  was  used  during 
the  war  (instead  of  gum)  in  calico  printing,  but  it  afterwards 
fell  into  disuse,  as  a  very  inferior  substitute. 

ESTHER. 

r    Is  not  the  Cudbear,  which  is  used  to  color  silk  stockings, 
a  lichen? 

MRS.  F. 
Yes;  Lecanora  tartar ea  is  its  botanical  appellation. 

FREDERICK. 

But  why  is  it  called  cudbear? 
*15 


174  PERELLE. 

MRS.  F. 

From  a  Mr.  Cuthbert,  who  first  brought  it  into  use.  It  is 
employed  to  produce  a  purple  for  dying  woollen  yarn;  and  is 
used  for  that  purpose,  to  a  great  extent,  at  Glasgow.  It 
grows  in  Sicily  and  Norway,  and  from  the  latter  country,  it 
is  mostly  imported;  but  it  is  also  abundant  in  parts  of  Scot- 
land, and  many  an  industrious  Highlander  gains  a  living  by 
scraping  off  this  lichen  with  an  iron  hoop,  and  sending  it  to 
the  Glasgow  market.  The  French  Perelle,  which  comes  from 
Auvergne  and  other  parts  of  France,  is  a  kindred  species  of 
the  same  genus  (LecanoraParella^bnt  it  produces  a  dye  far 
superior  to  cudbear,  and  quite  equal  to  that  of  Archill  (Roccella 
tinctoria^  to  which  we  are  now  come.* 

FREDERIC^. 

That  too  is  a  singular  name. 

MRS.  F. 

Its  several  appellations  of  Roccella,  Orceille,  Archill, 
Orchill,  are^derivedfrom  a  Florentine  family  of  the  Oricellarii, 
Rucellarii,  or  Rucellai,  one  of  whom  carried  on  a  considera- 
ble trade  in  the  Levant,  and  returning  with  great  wealth  to 
Florence,  first  made  known  in  Europe  the  art  of  dyeing  with 
this  plant,  which  was  exported  from  the  islands  of  the  Archi- 
pelago. This  interesting  lichen  yields  the  most  valuable  dye 
of  this  tribe;  it  is  found  on  steep  rocks  of  the  Scilly  Islands, 
and  in  the  south  of  England,  but  it  is  far  more  abundantly 
produced  in  warm  climates,  and  particularly  in  the  Cape  de 
Verd  and  Canary  Islands,  whence  it  has  also  been  called  the 
Canary  weed,  and  where  it  was  discovered  towards  the 
commencement  of  the  last  century,  and  soon  placed  among 
the  royal  monopolies  of  the  Spanish  crown.  Its  value  quick- 
ly excited  the  attention  of  the  Portuguese,  who  collected  it 
without  restriction,  in  the  Cape  de  Verd  Islands,  Madeira, 
Porto  Santo,  and  the  Azores,  until  the  Jesuits,  in  1730,  pro- 
cured from  John  V,  the  privilege  of  collecting  it.  The 

*  Several  species  of  Pannelia  are  also  collected  by  the  Scotch 
peasantry  to  dye  woollen  stuffs  a  dirty  purple. 


LITMUS.  175 

Crown  afterwards  assumed  the  right  to  itself,  and,  at  one 
time,  it  was  considered  to  be  the  Queen  of  Portugal's  pin- 
money;*  but  it  was  afterwards  ceded  to  a  mercantile  company 
until,  by  its  bad  management,  the  commerce  had  so  much 
declined  that  the  Government  again  took  it  into  its  own  hands 
in  1790,  and  now  they  only  allow  it  to  be  sent  to  Lisbon.  It 
grows  in  the  crevices  of  steep,  rocks,  in  the  interior  of  the 
islands.  The  finest  is  collected  in  St.  Antonio,  where  it 
grows  in  some  places  so  inaccessible  as  only  to  be  procured 
by  lowering  the  gatherer  down  with  ropes.  But  the  great  con- 
sumption of  it  of  late  years  has  caused  the  finest  quality  of 
it  to  become  scarce.f 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  it  chiefly  used  for? 

MRS.  F. 

The  English  blue  broad-cloths  are  first  dyed  with  Orchill, 
which  gives  their  peculiar  lustre  and  purple  tint,  when 
viewed  in  a  certain  light;  and,  it  may  also  be  useful  to  you 
to  know,  that  Orchill  is  manufactured  by  the  Dutch,  into  a 
paste  called  Litmus,  of  which  you  will  often  hear  in  chemical 
experiments.  When  infused  in  water,  or  when  paper  is 
stained  with  Litmus,  it  is  employed  as  the  most  delicate  test 
for  detecting  the  presence  of  acids  and  alkalis;  the  acid  turns 
it  red,  the  alkali  restores  it  to  its  original  blue  color.  Orchill 
is  also  used  for  dyeing  silk  and  ribands;  but  its  blue,  though 
beautiful,  is  perishable.  Some  writers  have  endeavored  to 
prove,  that  the  celebrated  Tyrian  purple  was  produced  from 
this  substance,  the  lichen  being  abundant  on  the  Phoenician 
coast;  but  we  have  full  evidence  to  the  contrary. 

ESTHER. 
Might  not  the  purple  have  been  made  from  Cochineal? 

MRS.  F. 
No;  the  ancients  were  unacquainted  with  this  insect, 

*  Bowdiob's  Madeira. 

f  Canary  orchill  is  most  esteemed,  then  that  from  Madeira,  and 
the  Barbary  is  least  valued  of  all. 


176 


COCHINEAL. 


although  they  employed  that  of  the  Evergreen  oak  or  Ilex,* 
called  by  the  Arabians  kermes,  whence  karmasinus,  the 
French  cramoisi,  and  our  crimson  and  carmine.  The  kermes 
was  used  to  dye  scarlet,  and  was  known  to  the  Egyptians, 
in  the  time  of  Moses,  and  to  the  Phoenicians,  at  even  an 
earlier  period.  The  latter  people  termed  it  Thola  or  Tola, 
the  Greeks  Coccus;  from  which  name,  and  from  the  epithet 
vermiculatum  (given  to  it  when  it  was  ascertained  to  be  the 
produce  of  a  worm),  have  sprung  the  Latin  coccineus,  the 
French  vermeil,  and  our  cochineal  and  vermilion,  f 

FREDERICK. 

What  does  our  cochineal  come  from? 


Cactus  Coccinellifer. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  an  insect  called  Coccus  cacti,  or  of  the  Cactus,  because 
it  is  parasitical  upon  that  family  of  plants.  It  only  exists  in 
Mexico,  where  the  Spaniards  found  it  employed  as  a  dye,  on 
their  arrival  in  1518.  It  has  ever  since  been  one  of  the 
greatest  sources  of  wealth,  and  De  Humboldt  estimates  the 
value  of  its  annual  exportation  at  500,000/.  Although  the 
East  India  Company  have  offered  60,000/.  to  any  one  who 
shall  introduce  the  insect  into  India,  they  have  hitherto  been 
unable  to  procure  any,  except  the  wild  species  from  Brazil. 

*  Coccus  ilicis,  i.  e.  of  the  ilex. 

t  Kirby  and  Spence;  Dictionnaire  des  Sciences  Naturelles,  &c. 


MUREX  AND  BUCCINUM.  177 

But,  we  have  widely  digressed  from  the  Tyrian  purple, 
which,  I  was  about  to  tell  you,  we  know  to  have  been  pro- 
duced by  a  fish. 

HENRIETTA. 

On  what  authority1? 

MRS.  F. 

Upon  that  of  Pliny,  who  states  that  there  were  two  species 
of  mollusca  which  afforded  it;  the  one  a  tolerably  large 
animal,  which  Linnaeus  supposes  to  have  been  Murex  truncu- 
/us,  and  Cuvier  Murex  brandarum.  You  all  of  you  know 
the  Murex? 


Murex  Trunculus,  Murex  Brandanus,  &c. 


ESTHER. 

They  are  what  we  call  the  Rockshells. 

•MRS.  F. 
The  other  animal  employed  was  a  Buccinum. 

ESTHER. 

That  is  the  genus  which  we  term  Whelks. 

MRS.  F. 

Exactly  so;  which  species  was  used,  is  not  exactly  known. 
Linnaeus  assigns  the  distinction  to  Buccinum  lapillus,  which 
is  one  of  the  commonest  of  our  British  shells;  but  many  of 
this  family  afford  a  coloring  matter,  as  do  several  others  of 
the  univalve  shells  —  such  as  Helix  Janthina,  which,  when 
touched,  emits  a  purple  liquor  that  tinges  the  sea  around  it. 
This  Buccinum  produced  a  color  resembling  the  Murex, 


178  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  DYE. 

though  not  precisely  the  same.  The  shells  are  said  to  have 
been  taken  by  an  ingenious  contrivance;  the  nets  were  baited 
with  mussels  which  were  half  dead,  and  their  shells  conse- 
quently partly  open;  the  fish  pushed  its  trunk  into  the  shell 
in  order  to  draw  out  its  prey,  upon  which  the  mussel  closed 
entirely,  and  thus  detained  its  prisoner. 

ESTHER. 

Were  there  not  several  tints  of  this  dye? 


Yes;  the  various  kinds  were  produced  by  using  different 
proportions  of  the  two  fish.  To  obtain  the  color  called  ame- 
thyst, we  read  that  lOOlbs.  of  the  purple,  and  SOOlbs.  of  the 
Buccinum  were  mixed  together,  and  this  enormous  quantity 
of  fish  only  served  to  dye  fifty  pounds  of  wool. 

ESTHER. 

How  was  that  tint  mixed  which  was  called  the  Tyrian 
purple? 

MRS.  F. 

The  wool  was  first  dipped  into  the  Murex  and  then  into 
the  Buccinum;  and  by  this  means,  was  obtained  the  finest 
color,  which  appears,  from  what  we  read,  to  have  had  a  kind 
of  shot  appearance,  blackish  when  viewed  in  front,  but  bril- 
liant when  seen  on  the  side.  Frederick,  you  may  recollect 
that  Horace  alludes  to  the  double  dyeing  of  the  purple,  when 
he  says  (2d  Book,  16th  Ode),  as  rendered  by  Francis  in  his 
translation: 

"  Thy  robes  the  ftwce-dyed  purple  stains." 

ESTHER. 

It  was  the  custom  to  crush  the  Murex  as  soon  as  taken, 
for,  if  kept,  the  animal  ejected  its  purple  dye. 

MRS.  F. 

Aristotle  tells  us  that  a  single  shell  sold  for  about  3/.;  but 
as  it  appears  that  only  a  single  drop  of  the  dye  was  produced 


ROYAL  COLOR.  179 

from  each  animal,  it  is  not  surprising-  that  it  was  so  dear. 
The  Murex  is  still  used,  in  a  small  way,  for  the  purpose  of 
dyeing,  in  India  and  Armenia.  Vast  heaps  of  fragments  of 
shells  have  been  foun4  at  Tarentum,  which  are  supposed  to 
be  those  from  which  the  purple  has  been  extracted,  and 
which  would  seem  to  indicate  that  place,  as  one  where  it  was 
prepared. 

MARY. 

How  came  the  ancients  to  discover  that  these  fish  produced 
a  dye? 

MRS.  F. 

Like  most  of  their  discoveries,  they  have  assigned  to  it  a 
fabulous  origin. 

FREDERICK. 

We  should  like,  aunt,  to  hear  it. 

MRS.  F. 

They  say  that  the  dog  of  Hercules  having  stained  its  mouth 
by  eating  the  animal  of  a  shell,  which  it  picked  up,  on  the 
sea  shore,  Tyras  was  so  struck  with  the  beauty  of  the  color, 
that  she  declared  she  would  not  see  Hercules,  until  he  had 
procured  her  a  robe  of  that  hue.  Hercules  therefore  collected 
all  the  shells  which  he  could  find,  and  dyed  a  garment  of  the 
purple.  According  to  this  account,  the  discovery  is  placed 
at  about  1500  years  before  the  birth  of  our  Saviour;  but  there 
are  various  fables  attached  to  the  discovery  of  this  dye,  some 
assigning  it  to  Phoenix,  second  king  of  Tyre,  who  lived  about 
B.  c.  500;  but  all  these  accounts  are,  we  must  conclude,  en- 
veloped in  fiction,  though  all  concur  in  attributing  to  accident 
the  original  discovery.  In  all  ages  purple  has  been  a  royal 
color.  Moses  used  purple  stuffs  for  the  furniture  of  the 
tabernacle,  and  for  the  dress  of  ,the  high  priests.  Many  of 
the  pagans  believed  that  the  dye  had  a  peculiar  virtue,  and 
was  capable  of  appeasing  the  wrath  of  their  gods.  The 
Babylonians  gave  purple  habits  to  their  idols;  the  kings  of 
Phoenicia  were  always  attired  in  purple;  and  the  Roman  em- 


180  HYACINTHINE  CURLS. 

perors  took  to  themselves  the  exclusive  privilege  of  wearing; 
this  color,  by  an  imperial  decree,  by  which  its  use  was  re- 
stricted, under  pain  of  death,  to  the  emperor.  Hence  the 
expression  of  "  assuming  the  purple"  became  synonymous 
with  that  of  ascending-  the  throne.  The  emperors  appointed 
officers  to  superintend  the  Phoenician  manufactures,  and  a 
pound  of  Tyrian  dye  sold,  in  the  reign  of  Augustus,  for  a 
sum  ahnost  equal  to  361.  of  our  present  money. 

MARY. 
What  a  beautiful  rich  color  it  must  have  been. 


It  was  undoubtedly  the  finest  then  known;  but,  after  all, 
the  best  colors  that  could  be  made  by  the  ancients,  were  but 
poor  and  dingy,  compared  with  those  which  the  moderns,  by 
the  assistance  of  chemistry,  are  able  to  produce.  Pliny 
says  that  the  Tyrian  purple  resembled  in  color  congealed 
blood. 

FREDERICK. 

Then  that  is  the  reason  why  Homer  and  other  poets  talk 
so  much  of  purple  blood  —  an  expression  which  I  could  never 
understand,  any  more  than  I  can  that  of  "  hyacinthine  locks;" 
for  no  hyacinth  is  the  color  of  the  human  hair. 

MRS.  F. 

According  to  Lord  Byron,  the  term  is  common  enough 
among  the  Eastern,  as  well  as  the  Greek  poets;  but  the  ex- 
pression is  not,  as  you  imagine,  derived  from  the  color  of  the 
flower,  but  from  the  form  of  its  petals,  which  are  curled  out- 
wards, and  may  be  thought  to  bear  some  fancied  resemblance 
to  the  curls  of  the  hair. 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt,  I  am  sure  that  we  never  should  have 
thought  of  such  an  explanation. 

ESTHER. 

Pray,  mamma,  is  not  the  red  Martagon  Lily  supposed  by 
many  to  have  been  the  hyacinth  of  ancient  mythology1? 


MARTAGON  LILY.  181 

MRS.  F. 

You  are  right.  Esther;  and  let  us  hear  from  you,  the  reasons 
for  this  conclusion. 


According  to  the  fable,  when  Apollo  changed  the  blood 
of  Hyacinthus  into  a  flower,  he  inscribed  the  characters  M 
upon  its  petals.  Now  the  flowers  of  our  hyacinth  (indepen- 
dent of  the  color  being  different  from  that  assigned  to  the 
hyacinth  of  the  ancients)  has  no  spots  whatever  upon  the 
petals,  whereas,  on  the  other  hand,  by  some  assistance  from 
the  imagination,  these  letters  may  be  traced  in  the  dark, 
blackish  spots  of  the  Martagon  lily,*  with  which,  in  other 
respects,  the  description  of  the  ancient  Hyacinth  coincides, 
it  being  described  of  an  iron  red  or  Roman  purple,  which  is 
the  color  of  the  common  Martagon;  and  the  curling  of  the 
petals,  being  common  to  both  flowers,  there  can  be  no  objec- 
tion on  that  point. 

MARY. 

I  did  not  like  to  interrupt  you  just  now;  but  what  did  you 
mean,  mamma,  by  calling  the  shells  which  produce  the  purple 

mollusca? 

MRS.  F. 

It  was  the  animal  they  contain,  which  I  so  called,  not  the 
shell,  which  is  merely  its  covering.  Mollusca  form  one  of 
Cuvier's  four  great  divisions!  of  the  animal  kingdom,  and 
are  defined  to  be  without  a  skeleton,  with  white  blood,  their 
muscles  attached  only  to  their  skin,  which  forms  a  soft  re- 
tractile covering,  on  which,  in  many  species,  are  produced 
those  strong  plates  which  we  call  shells. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  this  is  conchology. 

*  Martyn. 

f  He  divides  the  animal  kingdom  into  vertebrated,  molluscous, 
articulated,  and  radiated  animals. 
16 


182  MOLLUSC A. 

MRS.  F. 

Not  so,  for  conchology  implies  the  knowledge  of  shells; 
but  all  mollusca  have  not  this  kind  of  covering.  Those 
which  have,  are  called  testaceous,  from  the  Latin  testa,  a 
shell.  Conchology,  therefore,  may  be  defined  as  the  classi- 
fication of  the  testaceous  mollusca,  according  to  the  forms  of 
their  shells,  and  is  consequently  a  very  distinct  science  from 
that  of  the  knowledge  of  molluscous  animals. 

MARY. 

Pray,  mamma,  what  are  shells  made  of? 

MRS.  F. 

Like  the  bones  of  vertebrated  animals,  they  are  composed 
of  a  calcareous  substance,  almost  as  heavy  and  as  hard  as 
marble,  which  substance  is  produced  in  layers.  In  propor- 
tion as  the  animal  increases  in  age,  it  forms  a  new  layer  on 
the  inner  surface  of  the  shell,  which  extending  beyond  the 
edge  of  the  preceding  layer,  increases  the  size  of  the  shell  in 
length,  breadth,  and  thickness. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  how  can  naturalists  ascertain  this  point? 

MRS.  F. 

By  comparing  the  shells  of  the  same  species  of  animals  of 
different  ages;  as  for  example,  the  mussel,  in  which  the  old 
shell  is  seen  to  be  composed  of  many  distinct  layers;  whereas 
that  of  the  young  animal  only  consists  at  first  of  one  stratum, 
not  soft  and  gelatinous,  but  equally  firm  as  the  old  shell, 
though,  of  course,  more  fragile,  on  account  of  its  thinness. 

ESTHER. 

Then  slugs  and  the  cuttle  fish,  for  instance,  are  both  mol- 
lusca, although  they  would  not  be  mentioned  in  a  work  on 
conchology. 

£  '\      :. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes ;  but  the  last  contain  a  calcareous  substance  within 


SEPIA.  —  INDIA  INK.  183 

the  flesh  of  the  back,  which  may  fairly  be  termed  an  internal 
shell.* 

^  HENRIETTA. 

Is  that  what  we  call  cuttle-bone? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is;  this  substance  being  friable  in  its  structure  is  used 
for  polishing;  and  I  do  not  know  whether  you  observed  that 
Mrs.  Clifford  gives  it  to  her  young  canary  birds  to  sharpen 
their  beaks.  The  cuttle-fish  are  enabled  to  throw  out  an  inky 
liquor,  in  order  to  form  a  thick  cloud  around  them,  by  means 
of  which  they  conceal  themselves  from  their  enemies;  or,  as 
some  suppose,  lie  in  ambush  for  their  prey.  You  all  know 
what  is  made  of  this  liquor? 

HENRIETTA. 

The  color  called  Sepia,  which  we  use  in  drawing. 

FREDERICK. 

And  also  Indian  Ink. 

MRS.  F. 

Of  this,  we  are  not  so  sure,  Frederick.  The  present 
opinion  is,  that  Indian  ink  is  prepared  by  the  Chinese  from 
lamp-black,  mixed  with  gum,  and  rendered  aromatic  by  some, 
as  yet,  unascertained  substance.  Sepia  seems  sometimes  to 
have  been  used  as  ink  by  the  ancients;  but,  I  believe,  that 
they  more  frequently  employed  charcoal.  The  ink  of  the 
ancients  was  more  easily  obliterated  than  ours,  as  appears 
from  a  story  of  Caligula,  who  is  said  to  have  forced  those 
who  wrote  any  thing  against  him  to  lick  it  out  with  their 
tongues. f  In  the  Museum  at  Naples,  is  a  pentagonal  ink- 
stand, not  much  unlike  those  in  modern  use.  But  to  return 
to  the  Sepia;  the  flesh  of  these  animals  was  much  esteemed 
by  the  ancients,  and  is  still  eaten  in  Italy. 

*  To  this  ihe  bone  of  the  Calmar  (Sepia  loligo]  bears  some  resem- 
blance. We  find  a  horny,  hollow,  flat  shell  in  the  Jlplysia^  and  the 
slug  also  lias  a  small  internal  shell. 

t  Sir  William  Cell. 


184  THE  SEPIA. 

1 

But  it  cannot  be  good. 

MRS.  F. 

On  the  contrary,  it  is  particularly  delicate.  It  is  cut  into 
thin  strips  and  fried,  when  it  much  resembles  lobster;  we 
used  often  to  eat  it  at  Naples,  and  liked  it  very  much;* 
though,  I  confess,  that  were  we  to  have  seen  it  before  it  was 
cooked,  we  might  have  felt  less  disposed  to  taste  it. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  should  think  so,  aunt;  for  the  cuttle-fish  is  such  a  very 
disagreeable  looking  animal  that  I  could  never  make  up  my 
mind  to  eat  it. 

MARY. 

What  is  it  like? 

HENRIETTA. 

I  once  saw  one,  when  we  were  staying  by  the  sea-side. 
It  is  about  a  foot  long,  of  a  soft,  white  substance,  and  its 
mouth  is  placed  in  the  centre  of  its  feet,  and  is  exactly  like 
the  beak  of  a  parrot. 

MRS.  F. 

With  this  powerful  weapon,  the  Sepia  destroy  a  great 
many  fish  and  Crustacea.  They  belong  to  the  class  Cephalo- 
poda of  Cuvier,  which  is  remarkable,  as  being  the  only  class 
of  Mollusca  which  possess  the  organ  of  hearing. 

HENRIETTA. 

What,  have  not  all  Mollusca  the  five  senses'? 


No;  they  only  possess  those  of  taste  and  sight,  except  in 
this  class,  which  has  the  additional  faculty  of  hearing.  The 
Nautilus  and  Argonaut  belong  to  the  same  class;  but  I  wish 
to  know,  if  any  of  you  have  heard  of  the  eight-armed  cuttle 

*  Several  of  this  genus  are  eaten  in  Italy. 


THE  SEPIA  OCTOPODIA.  185 

fish  (Sepia  octopodia'),  the  celebrated  Polypus  of  the  ancients, 
and  by  some  authors,  supposed  to  be  the  animal  which  they 
called  the  Kraken? 

HENRIETTA. 

But  the  Kraken  is  the  wonderful  American  sea  monster. 

MRS.  F. 

True;  the  story  has  been  revived  by  American  navigators. 
Pliny  gives  an  account  of  an  animal  which  ravaged  the 
coasts  of  Bcetica.  It  used  to  leave  the  sea,  had  arms  thirty 
feet  long,  and  was  at  last  killed  by  men  and  dogs,  and  sent 
as  a  present  to  Lucullus.  ^Elian,  also,  is  equally  marvellous 
in  his  stories  about  this  animal. 

FREDERICK. 

But  I  suppose  that  all  this  is  quite  fabulous1? 


Perhaps  not  entirely  so,  for  such  tales  are  seldom  invented 
without  some  foundation.  The  ancient  accounts  of  the 
Polypus,  the  stories  of  the  Kraken,  and  the  reports  of  the 
Norwegian  Sea  Serpent,  all  tend  to  prove  the  existence  of 
some  enormously  large  animal  in  the  Indian  and  Northern 
seas.  To  none  can  the  description  better  apply,  than  to  the 
Sepia  odopodia,)  which  is  furnished  with  arms  six  times  longer 
than  its  body,  and  is  known  to  attain  so  great  a  size,  and  at 
the  same  time,  to  possess  so  much  strength,  as  only  to  be 
approached  with  caution.  In  the  Indian  seas,  where  Pennant 
says  he  has  been  assured  that  they  have  been  found  with 
arms  nine  fathoms  (54  feet)  long,  the  islanders,  when  sailing 
in  their  narrow  canoes,  are  said  always  to  go  provided  with 
hatchets,  in  order  to  cut  off  the  arms  of  these  animals,  which 
they  throw  on  each  side  of  the  canoe,  and  by  this  means, 
drag  it  under  water  and  sink  it.  Expert  swimmers  have 
often  perished,  by  the  animal  entwining  its  arms  around  them 
and  thus  drawing  them  under  water.  A  northern  navigator, 
Captain  Magnus  Deus,  is  said  to  have  lost  three  men  in  this 
manner:  but  for  the  veracity  of  these  statements  we  do  not 
16* 


186 


THE  NAUTILUS. 


pretend  to  vouch;  we  only  allude  to  them,  because  they  go  to 
prove,  that  some  enormous  Cephalopoda  is  frequently  met 
with,  which  credulous  navigators  have  readily  transformed 
into  this  extraordinary  monster.* 


Did  you  not  say,  mamma,  that  the  Paper  Nautilus  (Jlrgo- 
nauta  argo)  belongs  to  the  family  of  Cephalopoda? 

MRS.  F. 

I  did  say  so.  I  suppose  you  have  all  seen  pictures  of  this 
animal  st&mminff  on,  the  surface  of  the  water,  erecting  its  two 
largest  re*'aculai£&j^arms)  for  sails,  employing  the  other  six 
as  oars,  and  its  shell  as  a  boat?  Nothing,  I  should  think, 
can  present  a  prettier  sight.  In  fine  weather  they  are  to  be 
seen  in  troops  in  the  Mediterranean,  but  descend  immediately 
on  the  approach  of  rough  weather,  or  of  danger.  In  order  to 
effect  this,  the  Nautilus  draws  in  water  to  add  to  its  weight, 
and  thus  is  enabled  to  sink  into  the  depths  of  the  ocean. 
When  it  wants  to  re-ascend,  it  diminishes  the  specific  gravity 
of  its  shell  by  ejecting  the  water,  and  thus  again  rises  to  the 
surface  of  the  sea.  The  Jlrgonauta  argo  does-  not  appear  to 
adhere  to  its  shell,  whence  many  naturalists  have  imagined 
that  the  animal  which  inhabits  it,  is  parasitic,  occupying, 
like  the  hermit  crab  (Cancer  Bernhardus^the  shell  of  another. 
But,  as  this  animal  is  always  found  in  this  shell,  and  no 
other  has  ever  been  seen  to  inhabit  it,  although  the  shell  is 
common,  and  often  seen  on  the  surface  of  the  sea,  we  have 
every  reason  to  deem  this  opinion  to  be  highly  problematic. 

MARY  . 

Pray,  mamma,  what  is  that  enormous  shell  which  Mrs. 
Clifford  has  in  her  hot-house  to  hold  some  of  the  smaller 
kinds  of  water  plants? 

MRS.  F. 
It  is  the  Chama  gigas,  a  shell  which  sometimes  attains  an 

*  Dictionnaire  des  Sciences  Naturelles,  &c. 


THE  CHAMA  GIGAS.  187 

immense  size,  and  is,  1  believe,  the  largest  species  known. 
The  flesh  of  the  animal  is  eatable,  but  is  very  hard.  Several 
individuals  have  been  found  which  weighed  more  than  SOOlbs. 
The  French  call  these  shells  Benitiers,  because  they  are  used 
to  hold  the  holy  water;  and  there  are  two  in  the  church  of 
St.  Sulpice  in  Paris,  (where  they  are  applied  to  that  pur- 
pose,) which  were  presented  to  Francis  I,  by  the  republic  of 
Venice.  These  shells  are  furnished  with  a  byssus  or  beard, 
by  which  they  are  suspended  to  the  rocks,  and  which  is  so 
thick  and  tenacious,  as  only  to  be  separated  with  a  hatchet. 

ESTHER. 

Does  it  resemble  that  of  the  Pinna? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  not  so  silky,  for  the  byssus  of  the  Pinna  (Pinna  no- 
bilis]  is  woven  into  gloves,  &c. 

ESTHER. 

How  is  it  prepared  for  that  purpose1? 

MRS.  F. 

The  byssus  (which  will  not  take  any  dye)  being  cut,  is 
twice  soaked  in  tepid  water,  and  once  in  soap  and  water,  and 
is  then  spread  out  to  dry,  in  some  cool  and  shady  place. 
While  it  is  yet  moist,  it  is  rubbed  softly  and  separated  with 
the  hand,  and  then  spread  out  again.  When  thoroughly 
freed  from  moisture,  it  is  next  drawn  through  a  wide-toothed 
comb,  and  afterwards  through  one  with  finer  and  closer  teeth. 
The  more  common  silk  is  thus  prepared;  but,  that  which  is 
destined  for  finer  works,  is  afterwards  drawn  through  closer 
toothed  combs  or  cards.  It  is  next  spun,  two  or  three  of  the 
threads  being  mixed  with  one  of  real  silk,  and  then  knitted. 
When  knitted,  it  is  again  washed  in  clear  water  mixed  with 
lemon  juice,  is  then  gently  beaten  between  the  hands,  and 
afterwards  smoothed  with  a  warm  iron. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  does  the  Pinna  spin  its  byssus! 


188  THE  PINNA  NOBILIS. 

MRS.  F. 

As  all  other  byssus-spinning  mollusca,  viz.  by  means  of  its 
foot;  the  spinnerets  of  the  spider  are  in  its  tail,  those  of  the 
silk-worm  and  other  spinning  moths  in  the  mouth;  Providence 
having  beautifully  arranged  their  situation  in  each  as  is  best 
adapted  to  the  wants  and  convenience  of  the  animal. 

ESTHER. 

Is  the  anecdote  about  the  Pinna,  and  its  parasite,  true, 
which  I  have  read  in  extracts  from  Dr.  Darwin's  poems'? 

MRS.  F. 

And  which  is  the  same  as  the  Pinnophylax  of  Pliny?  No;  I 
believe  it  to  be  fabulous,  excepting  so  far,  that  small  Crustacea, 
indeed  both  crabs  and  shrimps,  will  find  their  way  into  the 
shell  of  the  Pinna,  the  Mussel,  or  the  Whelk;  not  with  any 
view  of  hurting  the  animal,  but  in  order  to  defend  them- 
selves, especially  when  their  crust  is  soft,  and  they  are  the 
more  exposed  to  injury  from  the  attacks  of  their  enemies. 


189 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  FOOD  OF  VARIOUS  NATIONS. 

EARTH    EATEN    BY    THE  OTTOMACOS,    PEOPLE    OF  NEW   GUINEA,  NEW 
CALEDONIA,  PERU,  JAVA,  ETC. — STEINBUTTER. — GIRDLE  OF  FAMINE. 

—  ERMINE    HUNTERS.  —  GUM  ARABIC. TARTAR'S    CURD. — FISH- 
BREAD  OF  BABYLONIANS  AND  SOUTH  AMERICANS.  —  FOOD  OF  ANTS, 
BEES,  SPIDERS,  LOCUSTS,  AND  BOAS. — BUGONG  MOTH. — GOAT  MOTH. 
PALM  WORMS.  CHINESE. SHARK'S    FINS.  BICHE  DE    MER. 

—  SNAILS.  —  ESCARGATOIRES.  —  SIR   K.    D1GBY. —  ISRAELITES.  — 

HYBERNATION    OF    THE     SNAIL. SAW-DUST.  —  SHELL     OF     THE 

SNAIL. 


Requiring  each  to  gratify  his  taste 
With  different  food.1 

FRANCIS'S  HORACE. 


MRS.  F. 

I  HAVE  just  been  reading  a  curious  account  of  the  Ottoma- 
cos,  the  earth-eating  tribe  of  the  Orinoco.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Pray,  aunt,  tell  us  what  you  have  read. 

MRS.  F. 

These  people  collect,  from  the  shores  of  the  rivers  Meta 
and  Orinoco,  upon  which  they  live,  a  fat,  unctuous  clay  of  a 
grayish,  yellow  hue  (a  true  potter's  clay,  colored  by  a  little 
oxide  of  iron).  This  they  select  with  great  care,  being  able 
readily  to  distinguish,  by  the  taste,  one  clay  from  another. — 
They  then  form  it  into  balls  of  from  five  to  six  inches  in  diame- 

*  Humboldt,  Tableaux  de  la  Nature. 


190  EARTH  USED  AS  FOOD. 

ter,  and  bake  them  slightly,  until  the  upper  surface  becomes 
reddish.  It  is  again  moistened  when  they  wish  to  eat  it.  — 
The  Ottomacos  devour  immense  quantities  of  earth;  Hum- 
boldt  found  it  in  their  huts  piled  up  in  pyramids,  and  he  says, 
that  each  individual  will  consume  daily,  three-quarters, of  a 
pound,  or  even  more. 

ESTHER. 

But  is  it  their  sole  food? 

MRS.  F. 

During  the  rainy  season,  they  also  eat  small  fish,  lizards, 
or  the  root  of  a  fern,  but  these  clay  bullets  form  their  chief 
aliment.  At  other  times  of  the  year  they  subsist  on  tortoises 
and  fish,  which  they  shoot  with  their  arrows  with  admirable 
address;  but  so  fond  are  they  of  this  clay,  that  even  then, 
they  eat  a  little  of  it,  as  a  treat  after  their  repasts. 

ESTHER. 

But  surely,  their  health  must  suffer  from  such  unnatural 
food? 

MRS.  F. 

No;  the  Missionaries  who  live  among  them,  assert  that  it 
causes  no  illness  whatever,  and  that  they  observe  no  difference 
in  their  health  during  the  time  that  they  live  upon  it.  But 
this  extraordinary  propensity  to  eat  earth,  is  by  no  means 
uncommon  in  all  the  countries  of  the  torrid  zone;  and  children 
are  often  tied  up  in  the  house  to  prevent  them  from  going  out, 
after  the  rainy  season,  to  eat  earth.  De  Humboldt,  in  a  vil- 
lage, on  the  river  Magdalena,  saw  women,  who  were  making 
earthen  pots,  put  large  lumps  of  the  clay  into  their  mouths. 

ESTHER. 

And  I  have  heard  that  the  negroes  of  New  Guinea  eat  a 
yellowish  earth,  and  that  the  slaves  when  brought  to  America 
try  to  procure  a  similar  enjoyment,  and  that  it  is  sold  secretly 
in  the  markets;  but  though  their  health  always  suffers  in  con- 
sequence, no  punishment  can  induce  them  to  relinquish  the 
gratification. 


EARTH  USED  AS  FOOD.  191 

MRS.  F. 

Bat  it  were  almost  tedious  to  enumerate  the  various  people 
who  eat  earth.  The  inhabitants  of  New  Caledonia  devour 
pieces  as  large  as  the  hand,  of  a  species  Oolite.  In  several 
parts  of  Peru,  the  natives  buy  in  the  markets  a  calcareous 
earth,  which  they  reduce  to  a  line  powder,  and  mix  with  their 
Coca. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  Coca? 

MRS.  F. 

The  leaves  of  Erythroxylon  Peruvianum;  and  it  is  known 
that  the  Indian  messengers  do  not  take,  for  many  days,  any 
nourishment  but  this. 

ESTHER. 

But  chalk  has  not  been  yet  found  in  either  North  or  South 
America.* 

MRS.  F. 

No,  it  is  all  imported;  but  it  was  a  calcareous  earth,  not 
chalk,  upon  which  I  stated,  that  these  people  subsist.  In 
Java,  little  rolls  of  a  reddish  clay  are  sold  in  the  market-place 
under  the  name  of  Ampo.  Many  eat  it  to  become  thin,  which 
is  reckoned  a  great  beauty  among  the  Javanese;  and  even  in 
Germany,  the  workmen  in  the  free-stone  quarries  of  Kiffhau- 
sen  spread  upon  their  bread,  instead  of  butter,  a  very  fine  clay 
which  they  term  steinbutter  (stone  butter).  Thus  we  see  this 
vitiated  taste  widely  diffused;  but  more  particularly  among 
those  indolent  races  of  the  torrid  zone,  upon  whom  Providence 
has  lavished  her  greatest  treasures. 

ESTHER. 

Animals,  when  reduced  by  famine,  will  eat  earth. 

MRS.  c. 
Yes,  wolves  have  been  known  to  devour  clay;  but  did  you 

*  Conybeare  and  Phillips. 


192  ERMINE  HUNTERS  OF  SIBERIA. 

ever  hear  the  expedient  that  the  Hottentots  have  recourse  to, 
in  order  to  allay  the  feeling  of  hunger?  They  tighten  the 
girdle  which  they  wear  round  the  waist,  and  this  they  term 
"  tightening  the  girdle  of  famine."* 


But  that  is  not  a  singular  instance  of  this  means  being  em- 
ployed. The  ermine  hunters  of  Siberia  are  said  to  undergo 
most  dreadful  sufferings  from  hunger.  It  appears,  that  in 
order  to  defend  their  provisions  from  wild  beasts,  and  not 
b^ing  able  to  carry  them  along  with  them,  they  dig  holes  in 
the  ground,  and  bury  them,  at  such  stated  distances  as  they 
think  they  will  require  them.  But  sometimes  these  depots 
are  discovered  and  plundered  by  the  bears;  at  others,  they 
do  not  reach  their  fresh  supplies  at  the  expected  times. 
To  obviate  the  inconvenience  which  these  accidents  may 
occasion,  each  hunter  is  furnished  with  two  flat  boards  which 
they  attach  round  their  waists,  and  which  they  tighten  con- 
siderably, in  order  to  alleviate  the  gnawing  sensations  which 
they  experience. 

HENRIETTA. 

Poor  creatures! 

MRS.  F. 

Many  of  the  wandering  tribes  subsist,  during  their  passage 
across  the  African  desert,  upon  the  gum  of  an  acacia  (Jl.  vera. 
Willdenow). 

ESTHER. 

That,  I  believe,  is  the  same  plant  as  that  which  produces 
gum  arabic;   the   finest  of  which   i£  brought  in  caravans  to 
Cairo,  by  the  Arabs  who  live  round  Mount  Tor  and  Mount 
f  Sinai. 

MRS.  F. 

The  diet  of  the  Tartars,  when  on  a  hasty  march,  is  scanty 
enough;  for  on  sudden  emergencies  they  provide  themselves 

*  Thomson's  Travels  in  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope. 


DIET  OF  THE  HOTTENTOTS,  ETC.  193 

with  a  sufficient  number  of  .little  balls  of  cheese,  or  rather  of 
hard  curd,  which  they  occasionally  dissolve  in  water;  and 
this  unsubstantial  meal  will  support  for  many  days  the  life, 
and  even  the  spirits  of  the  patient  warrior.* 

FREDERICK. 

Herodotus  mentions  a  tribe  of  Babylonians  who  dried  their 
fish  in  the  sun,  then  beat  it  very  small  in  a  mortar,  sifted  it 
through  a  fine  cloth,  and  formed  it  into  cakes,  and  baked  it 
like  bread.f 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  very  much  the  manner  which  some  of  the  Indians 
of  the  Orinoco  still  pursue.  They  fry  their  fish,  dry  it  in  the 
sun,  and  reduce  it,  bones  and  all,  to  a  powder.  When  they 
wish  to  eat  it,  they  mix  water  with  it,  to  make  into  a  paste, 
which  they  call  "  manioc  de  pescado,"  or  fish  bread.:}:  But 
did  you  ever  hear  of  ants  being  eaten1? 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  the  Hottentots  eat  them  both  boiled  and  uncooked; 
the  Africans  parch  them  in  an  iron  pot,  stirring  them  about, 
as  is  done  in  roasting  coffee.  In  this  state  they  eat  them  as 
we  do  comfits;  and  a  traveller§  who  tasted  them,  says  that 
they  are  very  nourishing  and  wholesome;  in  taste,  much 
resembling  sugared  cream,  or  sweet  almond  paste.  In  some 
parts  of  Sweden,  ants  are  distilled  with  rye,  to  flavor  the 
inferior  kinds  of  brandy;j|  and  Sir  Stamford  Raffles  states  that 
white  ants  are  a  common  article  of  food  in  Java,^f  and  that 
they  are  sold  generally  in  the  public  market.  Their  extensive 
nests  are  opened  to  take  out  the  chrysalis;  or  they  are  watched 
and  swarms  of  the  perfect  insect  are  conducted  into  basins  or 
trays,  containing  a  little  water,  in  which  they  soon  perish. 

*  Gibbon.  t  Clio.  |  Humboldt. 

§  Smeathman.  |]  Kirby  and  Spence's  Entomology. 

U  History  of  Java,  vol.  i. 
17 


194  DIET  OF  THE  PARTHIANS,  ETC. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  cannot  fancy  people  eating  such  things. 

MRS.  F. 

Nor  would  you  probably  like  bees,  which  are  eating1  in 
Ceylon,  or  spiders  (Jlranea  edulis}  nearly  an  inch  long,  which 
a  traveller*  relates  that  the  inhabitants  of  New  Caledonia  eat 
with  avidity,  and  roast  over  the  fire.  Lalande  is  said  to  have 
been  equally  fond  of  these  strange  dainties  and  mention  is 
made  of  a  German  who  would  spread  them  upon  his  bread 
like  butter. 

FREDERICK. 

And  then  there  are  the  Locusts,  which  were  eaten  by  the 
Parthians. 

ESTHER. 

And  also  at  Mecca,  where  in  times  of  scarcity  they  are 
pounded  and  mixed  with  flour  for  bread,  or  fricasseed  in 
butter.  The  Hottentots  make  them  into  soup,  and  find  them 
fattening;  so  do  they  also  in  the  Mahratta  country.  The 
Moors  sometimes  eat  two  or  three  hundred  locusts  at  a  time; 
and  in  the  markets  even  of  Greece,  they  appear  to  have  been 
exposed  for  sale. 

FREDERICK. 

But  the  Greeks  used  to  eat  crickets. 

ESTHER. 

They  could  not  have  been  very  good;  Humboldt  states  that 
he  saw  the  Indian  children  drag  centipedes  eighteen  inches 
long,  out  of  the  earth,  and  devour  them. 

MRS.  F. 

Some  nations  also  eat  serpents.  Stedman  says  that  the 
negroes  wanted  to  eat  one  that  he  shot,  and  the  negroes  of 
Congo  and  Angola  feast  upon  the  boas,  and  prefer  them  to 

*  Labillardiere. 


THE  BUGONG  MOTH.  195 

poultry.  Shaw  also  states,  that  a  population  of  40,000  peo- 
ple at  Gairo,  live  upon  lizards  and  serpents  as  a  species  of 
self-mortification.  But  did  you  ever  hear  of  a  people  who 
ate  moths? 

HENRIETTA. 

No,  aunt;  we  shall  be  much  obliged  to  you  to  give  us  an 
account  of  them. 

MRS.  P. 

This  moth  (Euplaxt  hamato)  is  found  in  New  South  Wales, 
chiefly  on  the  Bugong  mountains,  where  it  assembles  in  mul- 
titudes, whether  for  the  purpose  of  migration,  is  not  yet 
ascertained,  but  immense  swarms  of  butterflies,  covering  a 
space  to  the  extent  of  three  or  four  acres,  were  seen  by 
captain  Cook;  and  captain  King  also  relates  that  they  con- 
gregated in  great  numbers.  The  bodies  of  the  moths  are 
large,  and  filled  with  a  yellowish  oil,  in  taste  much  resem- 
bling a  sweet  nut.  November,  December,  and  January,  are 
the  months  for  collecting  them;  and  this  period  is  a  season  of 
such  great  feasting  to  the  aborigines,  that  they  assemble,  from 
all  parts  of  the  country,  to  collect  the  moths  on  these  mountains 
where  they  are  found  upon  the  masses  of  granite,  as  many 
as  five  or  six  bushels  being  gathered  upon  a  rock.  The 
natives  make  smothered  fires  underneath  the  rocks  where  they 
are  collected,  and  thus  suffocate  them  with  smoke,  at  the 
same  time  sweeping  them  off  frequently  in  baskets  full  at  a 
time.  After  they  have  collected  a  sufficient  quantity,  they 
are  thus  prepared:  —  a  circular  space  is  cleared  upon  the 
ground,  and  on  it  a  fire  is  lighted,  which  is  kept  burning 
until  the  ground  is  sufficiently  heated,  when  the  fire  and  ashes 
are  removed,  and  moths  placed  upon  the  heated  ground,  and 
stirred  about  until  the  down  and  wings  are  removed  from 
them;  they  are  then  placed  upon  pieces  of  bark,  and  winnowed 
in  order  to  separate  the  wings  and  dust,  which  are  mixed 
with  the  bodies.  They  are  afterwards  either  eaten,  or  placed 
into  a  wooden  vessel,  and  pounded  into  masses  or  cakes, 
resembling  lumps  of  fat,  or  rather  dough,  which  has  been 


196  SINGULAR  DIET  OF  THE  CHINESE. 

discolored.  These  masses  will  hardly  keep  a  week,  unless 
smoked,  when  they  can  be  preserved  to  a  much  longer  period. 
With  these,  the  native  tribes  load  themselves  during  the 
season  of  feasting,  and  thrive  and  fatten  upon  this  strange 
nourishment.  The  Bugong  moth  is  also  a  great  favorite  with 
the  cows,  who  often  dispute  their  possession  with  the 
natives.* 


Thank  you,  mamma.     I  never  before  heard  of  a  moth  being 
eaten  in  its  perfect  state,  though  the  caterpillar  of  the  Goat 
moth  is  supposed  to  have  been  eaten  by  the  Romans,  and  the 
Chinese  eat  the  chrysalis  of  the  silk-worm,  after  having., 
wound  off  the  silk. 

MRS.  F. 

Fried  grasshoppers  and  silk-worms  are  preferred  by  the 
inhabitants  of  Madagascar  to  any  other  food;  and  then  there 
is  the  Grugru  worm  of  the  cabbage  palm,  and  the  worms 
furnished  to  the  Javanese  by  the  teak  and  other  trees;  but  I 
really  believe,  that  the  Chinese  eat  more  strange  animals, 
than  any  other  civilised  nation  in  the  world.  Dogsf  and  cats 
are  made  into  soups;  and  rats  are  also  eaten  by  them,^:  if  we 
may  credit  a  recent  account,  s  rved  up  with  worm  sauce. 

ESTHER. 

The  South  Americans  used  to  eat  the  mute  dogs  of  their 
country,  at  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards,  and  so,  I 
believe,  do  theTartars;§  but,  speaking  of  the  Chinese,  I  find 
that  they  eat  the  fins  and  tail  of  the  shark,  which  are  vory 
glutinous,  and  are,  indeed,  much  liked  by  our  seamen. 
When  dried,  they  form  an  article  of  commerce  to  China, 
where  they  are  used  in  soups.  The  shark  is  also  eagerly 
aten  by  the  natives  of  the  Polynesian  islands,  who  often 
feast  upon  it  in  a  raw  state. 

*  Bennett's  Wanderings  in  New  South  Wales, 
t  Dogs  are  also  much  eaten  on  the  Gold  Coast. 
|  Bennett's  Wanderings  in  New  South  Wales, 
HumhnUU. 


B1CHE  DE  MER.  197 

MRS.  F. 

Then  there  are  birds'  nests,  which  we  have  before  alluded 
to,  and  also  the  biche  or  bearche  de  mer. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  that? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  now  ascertained  to  be  a  species  of  Sea  Slug  (Holu~ 
thurise);  which  is  dried  and  used  in  the  dishes  of  the  Chinese, 
being  collected  on  the  shores  of  nearly  all  the  islands  of  the 
Indian  Archipelago  and  New  Holland.  It  sells  in  China  at 
a  high  price;  but  as  it  requires  great  care,  and  the  smell  of  it, 
moreover,  is  very  disagreeable,  it  seldom  forms  part  of  the 
cargo  of  an  European  vessel.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Well,  that  is  not  worse  than  the  snails  which  some  people 
eat. 

MRS.  F. 

This  tribe  of  animals  is  a  general  article  of  food.  The 
Romans  had  their  Cocklearia,  in  which  they  were  fed  upon 
bran  and  wine  until  they  attained  an  incredible  size.f  The 
Ashantees  eat  snails  after  they  have  been  smoke-dried. £  In 
several  provinces  of  France,  at  Liege,  in  Silesia,  Brabant, 
Switzerland,  and  Italy,  they  are  also  eaten  as  food;  and  in 
the  markets  of  most  of  the  great  cities  of  the  Continent  they 
are  sold  to  make  a  mucilaginous  broth  for  those  who  are 
attacked  with  affections  of  the  lungs.  The  places  in  which 
they  are  fattened  are  termed  escargatoires,  escargot  being  the 
French  appellation  of  the  edible  snail  (Helix  pomatia).  One 
of  these  fattening  places  has  been  described  to  me,  which 
exists  in  a  convent  on  the  lake  of  Starenberg,  in  Bavaria.  It 
resembles,  in  construction,  one  of  our  garden  brick  pits;  and 
on  removing  the  cover,  hundreds  of  these  creatures  were 

*  Raffles's  Java,  and  Beechey's  Voyage. 

t  Varro  says,  until  a  shell  would  hold  two  quarts! 

i  Bowdich. 

17* 


198  EDIBLE  SNAILs*. 

to  be  seen,  which  were  regularly  fed  with  cabbages  and 
other  vegetables  until  sufficiently  fattened  to  be  brought  to 
market. 

ESTHER. 

Is  the  eatable  snail  a  native  of  Great  Britain "? 

MRS.  F. 

No;  but  it  has  been  naturalised  in  parts  of  Surrey,  and,  I 
believe,  Northamptonshire.  On  the  downs  near  Oroyden,  it 
is  of  common  occurrence.  Tradition  assigns  the  importation 
of  these  snails  to  Sir  Kenelm  Digby,  who  is  said  to  have  in- 
troduced them,  to  cure  his  wife  of  a  consumption.  I  believe 
that  attempts  have  been  made  to  naturalise  them  in  other 
parts  of  the  country,  but  without  success.  This  species  is 
much  larger  than  the  garden  snail,  and  the  shell  is  of  a  pretty 
light  brown. 

ESTHER. 

I  have  somewhere  read,  that  snails  are  supposed  to  have 
been  eaten  by  the  Israelites,  in  their  rapid  flight  out  of  Egypt 
to  the  Red  Sea. 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  a  supposition  which  must  rest  upon  mere  conjee-' 
ture,  as  there  is  no  mention  of  snails  in  the  Pentateuch,  to 
warrant  the  assertion.  It  is  true,  that  the  country  about  the 
Red  Sea  is  covered  with  a  close  herbage  completely  ani- 
mated with  snails,  which  are  much  esteemed  by  the  natives; 
and  so  abundantly  is  this  genus  diffused,  that,  even  in  the 
most  desert  wastes,  in  parts  of  Sahara,  which  is  destitute  of 
all  kinds  of  vegetation,  except  here  and  there  a  tuft  of  grass, 
or  a  solitary  stunted  tree,  which  seems  to  realise  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  Psalmist,  "  that  withereth  before  it  groweth  up;" 
yet,  even  these  parched  specimens  of  vegetation,  have  their 
inhabitants,  and  are  sometimes  quite  studded  with  the  snails 
which  exist  on  this  scanty  nourishment. 

ESTHER. 
The  natural  history  of  the  snail  is  most  interesting.     It 


HYBERNATION  OF  THE  SNAIL.     '  199 

lays  its  eggs  in  shady  places,  in  hollows  which  it  excavates 
and  covers  with  its  foot;  the  young  at  first  lives  entirely  upon 
the  pellicle  or  thin  skin  of  the  egg1,  and  remains  concealed  in 
its  retreat  a  month  before  its  shell  is  sufficiently  hardened  to 
encounter  its  enemies.  When  the  first  chills  of  autumn  ap- 
proach, the  snail  prepares  its  winter  habitation. 

FREDERICK. 

How  is  that  made1? 

ESTHER. 

In  this  manner.  A  quantity  of  viscid  mucus  or  slime  is 
secreted  in  the  under  surface  of  the  foot,  to  which  a  large 
portion  of  the  dead  leaves  adheres.  This  is  turned  on  one 
side,  and  a  fresh  secretion  being  thrown  out,  the  layer  of  earth 
mixed  with  mucus,  is  left.  The  animal  then  takes  another 
layer  of  earth  on  the  bottom  of  the  foot,  turns  it  also  to  the 
part  where  it  intends  to  form  the  wall  of  its  habitation,  and 
leaves  it  in  the  same  manner,  repeating  the  process  until  the 
cavity  is  sufficiently  large,  and  thus  making  the  surface  even 
and  compact.  In  forming  the  dome  or  arch  of  the  form,  a 
similar  method  is  used,  the  foot  collecting  on  its  under  sur- 
face a  quantity  of  earth,  and  the  animal,  turning  it  upwards, 
leaves  it  by  throwing  out  fresh  slime;  and  this  is  repeated 
until  the  perfect  roof  is  formed.*  Having  now  completed  its 
winter  house,  the  snail  draws  in  its  foot,  covering  it  with  the 
mouth,  and  opens  its  spiracle  to  draw  in  the  air;  on  closing 
this,  it  forms  with  its  slime  a  fine  membrane,  interposed  be- 
tween the  mouth  and  extraneous  substances.  Soon  after- 
wards, the  mouth  secretes  a  large  portion  of  a  very  white 
fluid  over  its  whole  surface,  which  instantly  sets  uniformly, 
and  forms  a  kind  of  solid  operculum,  like  plaster  of  Paris, 
about  half  a  line  in  thickness,  which  accurately  closes  the 
mouth.  When  this  is  become  hard,  the  animal  separates  the 
mantle  from  it.  After  a  time,  expelling  a  portion  of  the  air 
it  had  inspired,  and  thus  being  reduced  in  bulk,  it  retreats  a 
little  further  into  the  shell,  and  forms  another  leaf  of  mucus, 

*  Journal  of  the  Royal  Institution. 


200  ESCAPE  IN  SPRING. 

and  continues  repeating  this  operation,  till  there  are  sometimes 
five  or  six  of  these  cells  filled  with  air  between  it  and  the 
operculum.  The  membraneous  partitions  are  more  numerous 
at  the  end  than  at  the  beginning  of  winter,  and  in  snails  in- 
habiting the  mountains,  than  in  those  in  the  plains.  Respi- 
ration ceases,  during  the  period  of  hybernation. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  how  does  the  snail  get  out  when  the  spring  arrives'! 


Their  mode  of  escape  is  also  singular:  the  air  which  they 
had  expired  on  retiring  into  their  shell  further  and  further, 
remains  between  the  different  partitions  of  mucous  membrane 
above  mentioned,  which  form  so  many  cells  hermetically 
sealed;  this  they  again  inspire,  and  thus,  acquiring  fresh 
rigor,  each  separate  partition,  as  they  proceed,  is  broken  by 
the  pressure  of  the  foot,  projected  in  part  through  the  mantle: 
when  arrived  at  the  operculum  they  burst  it  by  a  strong  effort, 
and  finally  detaching  it,  then  emerge  from  their  long  im- 
prisonment.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  Esther,  for  this  interesting  account;  I  hope  that 
some  day  we  shall  find  a  snail  in  its  nest;  but  this  dry 
weather  I  never  see  them. 

MRS.  F. 

No;  they  remain  quiet,  because  their  locomotive  powers 
are  much  impeded  in  dry  weather,  by  the  dust,  &c.,  adhering 
to  their  slimy  foot;  after  rain,  they  move  about  with  com- 
parative celerity.  It  is  on  this  principle,  that  gardeners  lay 
sawdust  around  the  plants  which  they  which  to  defend  from 
their  attacks,  as  the  sawdust  clings  so  to  the  foot  of  the  snail 
as  to  prevent  the  animal  from  passing  over  it. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  a  beautiful  thin  shell  some  of  the  snails  have! 
*  Kirby's  Bridge  water  Treatise. 


SHELL  OF  THE  SNAIL.  201 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  the  history  of  this  genus  is  very  interesting  and  in- 
structive, affording-  a  striking  manifestation  of  the  superin- 
tending providence  of  the  Almighty.  He  cares  for  the 
peculiar  wants  of  his  creatures;  and,  though  all  things  are  at 
his  command,  He  is  not  prodigal  of  means.  He  gives  what 
is  required,  and  withholds  what  is  needless.  Upon  the 
animals  who  inhabit  the  rocky  shore,  He  has  bestowed  a 
thick  substantial  covering;  but  to  snails,  the  greater  number 
of  which  live  on  the  land,  or  in  stagnant  pools,  or  peaceful 
streams,  He  has  given  a  remarkably  light  shell,  which,  while 
it  affords  ample  protection  to  its  inmate,  offers  no  impediment 
to  its  locomotive  propensities.  Can  we  see  the  beautiful 
adaptation  to  circumstances,  the  provision  for  the  wants,  and 
consideration  for  the  comfort  of  His  creatures,  and  not  give 
the  praise  and  adoration  to  Him,  who,  riding  upon  the  wings 
of  the  winds,  regards  not  only  the  sons  of  men,  but  the, mean- 
est rep  tile  that  crawls  upon  the  earth?* 

*  Mayo,  Lessons  on  Sheila, 


202 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  UPAS  TREE. 

FABULOUS  ACCOUNT    OF    THE    UPAS.  —  REAL    HISTORY    OF   THE   TWO 

POISONS  KNOWN  UNDER  THAT  NAME. BARK  DRESSES. SPATHES 

OF  PALMS. ARISTOLOCHIA. WOURALI  AND  CURARE  POISONS  OF 

SOUTH  AMERICA.  —  WOLF  POISON  OF  THE  CAPE.  FISH  POISON  OF 

IRELAND. PARYSATIS  AND  STATIRA.- — MITHRIDATES.  —  CORNELIA. 

—  MARQUISE  DE  BRINY  ILLIERS.  —  IRON  MASK.  —  MAGNETIC  MASK. 

—  PELISSE. 


The  air  no  more  was  vital  now, 

But  did  a  mortal  poison  grow. — SPRAT. 


HENRIETTA. 

AUNT,  would  you  give  us  a  true  account  of  the  Upas  tree, 
for  Esther  tells  us,  that  a  great  part  of  the  stories  related 
about  it  are  false. 

MRS.  F. 

With  pleasure.  The  reports  of  the  Dutchman  Foersch, 
who  first  brought  the  story  to  Europe,  have  been  almost  all 
proved  to  be  incorrect  by  subsequent  travellers;  but,  suppose, 
Henrietta,  you  first  give  us  the  original  history  of  the  Upas, 
although  it  is  doubtless  familiar  to  you  all,  and  then  we  shall 
the  better  see  how  far  it  is  borne  out  by  facts. 

HENRIETTA. 

It  was  said  that  it  grew  near  the  Emperor's  seat,  some 
miles  from  Batavia;  that  all  the  country,  for  twelve  miles 
round  the  tree,  was  perfectly  barren,  in  consequence  of  the 
noxious  effluvia  which  it  emitted.  The  poison  was  said  to 


FABULOUS  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  UPAS.  203 

be  procured  by  the  malefactors  who  had  been  condemned  to 
death,  but  who  were  allowed  this  chance  for  their  lives;  and 
so  fatal,  indeed,  was  the  effluvia,  that  scarcely  one-tenth  re- 
turned, of  700  criminals  who  were  sent. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  Foersch  adds,  that  he  had  seen  several  of  the  crimi- 
nals who  had  escaped,  and  that  they  told  him  that  the  ground 
was  covered  with  sand  and  dead  bodies,  and  that  no  animal 
whatever  was  to  be  seen  there.  The  same  author  relates  that 
in  1755,  400  families  (comprising  about  1600  persons),  hav- 
ing refused  to  pay  tribute  to  the  Emperor,  were  banished, 
but  afterwards  obtained  permission  to  settle  in  the  country 
round  the  Upas.  In  less  than  two  months  their  number  was 
reduced  to  300,  who  afterwards  obtained  the  Emperor's 
pardon.  Such  is  the  long  received  fable  of  the  Upas;  let  us 
now  proceed  to  a  true  account  of  it. 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  first  place,  I  must  tell  you  that  there  are  two  plants 
in  the  island  of  Java  which  produce  the  Upas  poison,  with 
which  the  natives  poison  their  bamboo  arrows,  &c.;  the  one 
is  a  considerable  tree,  the  other  but  a  small  shrub.  Both 
grow  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  island;  the  tree  is  called  Upas 
antiar;  the  shrub,  Upas  tiente;  the  latter  affords  the  more  viru- 
lent poison  of  the  two;  but  we  will  first  describe  the  tree. 


That  is,  the  Upas  antiar? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes.  The  Upas  antiar  (Jlntiaris  toxicaria],  commonly 
called  IpO)  is  a  large  tree,  about  100  feet  high  and  18  feet  in 
circumference  at  the  base.  It  rises  with  a  naked  trunk  to 
about  60  or  80  feet,  before  it  throws  out  its  branches.  It 
belongs  to  the  21st  class  of  Linnaeus,  and  to  the  natural 


204  UPAS  ANT1AR. 

family  of  Urticfe.  Its  flowers  grow  in  catkins,  appearing 
about  the  month  of  June.  Its  leaves  are  of  a  pale  green,  are 
covered  with  rough  short  hairs,  often  curled,  and  dropping 
off  before  the  time  of  flowering,  and  not  re-appearing  until 
the  fall  of  the  flowers.  The  wood  is  white,  the  bark  smooth 
and  whitish;  in  old  trees,  the  cortex  (or  outer  bark)  is  more 
than  an  inch  thick. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  suppose  that  the  tree  grows  in  desert  plains'? 

MRS.  F. 

On  the  contrary,  it  is  only  met  with  in  the  thickest  forests. 
Dr.  Horsfield  states,  that  the  largest  which  he  saw,  was  so 
completely  environed  by  the  trees  and  shrubs  of  the  forest, 
that  it  was  with  difficulty  he  could  approach  it.  Vines  and 
other  shrubs  were  adhering  to  the  trunk,  and  ascending  to 
nearly  half  its  height,  while  birds  and  lizards  perched  upon 
its  branches,  and  ran  up  and  down  the  tree  with  impunity. 
The  juice,  which  in  the  young  branches  is  white,  and  in 
the  trunk  yellowish,  is  very  viscous,  and  is  bitter  to  the  taste; 
in  consistence  it  much  resembles  milk,  and  flows  abundantly 
if  an  incision  be  made  in  the  cortex— so  that,  in  a  short  time, 
a  cupful  may  be  collected. 


HENRIETTA. 

Is  there  any  danger  in  procuring  it1? 


Yes;  to  persons  of  delicate  health,  whose  constitutions 
render  them  susceptible  of  absorbing  the  effluvia,  its  exha- 
lations are  undoubtedly  hurtful,  while  others  feel  little  or  no 
ill  effects  from  it.  The  tree  may  be  approached  or  ascended 
with  safety,  unless  it  be  either  largely  wounded  or  cut  down, 
when,  a  considerable  portion  of  the  juice  being  disengaged, 
it  causes  cutaneous  eruptions  and  inflammation,  as  the  natives 
are  well  aware,  they  being  very  unwilling  to  assist  in  col- 
lecting it.  A  Javanese  whom  M.  Leschenault  sent  up  for 
the  purpose  of  gathering  some  of  the  flowering  branches,  was 


BARK  DRESSES.  205 

obliged  to  cut  notches  in  the  trunk,  in  order  to  climb  up  the 
tree;  he  had  scarcely  ascended  five  and  twenty  feet  before  he 
was  obliged  to  descend;  he  became  very  much  swollen,  and 
was  affected  with  vertigo,  &c.;  while  another  Javanese  went 
up  the  tree,  as  far  as  necessary  without  feeling  any  incon- 
venience. Leschenault  himself  walked  in  the  midst  of  the 
broken  branches  of  a  tree  which  he  had  had  cut  down,  and  even 
rubbed  his  face  and  hands  with  the  juice  (washing  it  off, 
however,  immediately),  and  he  did  not  feel  in  the  least  in- 
commoded by  his  experiment;  so  different  are  its  effects  upon 
different  individuals. 

ESTHER. 

Is  there  not  some  peculiarity  in  the  bark  of  the  antiar? 


Yes;  the  liber,  or  inner  bark,  is  of  a  fibrous  texture,  like 
that  of  the  paper  mulberry  (Broussonetia  papyri/era),  and, 
when  cleansed  from  its  adhering  particles,  resembles  coarse 
linen.  It  has  been  worked  into  ropes,  which  are  very  strong, 
and  the  poorer  class  of  people  employ  the  liber  of  the  younger 
trees  (it  being  more  easily  prepared)  for  the  purpose  of  mak- 
ing a  coarse  stuff,  which  they  wear  when  working  in  the 
fields;  but  it  requires  much  bruising,  washing,  and  soaking, 
before  it  can  be  used;  and  even  when  it  appears  to  be  com- 
pletely purified,  persons  wearing  this  dress,  on  being  exposed 
to  rain,  are  affected  with  an  intolerable  itching,  which  renders 
their  covering  insupportable,  a  small  portion  of  the  gum  still 
adhering  to  the  liber  producing,  when  exposed  to  the  wet, 
this  irritating  effect. 


These  bark  dresses  remind  me  of  the  beautiful  lozenge- 
shaped  meshes  of  the  liber  of  the  Lace-bark  tree  {Daphne 
lagetto),  which  has  been  actually  worn  as  lace.  Charles  the 
Second  had  a  cravat  made  of  it,  which  was  presented  to  him 
by  Sir  Thomas  Lynch,  when  governor  of  Jamaica,  of  which 
island  (where  it  is  used  for  ropes)  it  is  a  native,  as  it  is  also 
of  Hispaniola,  where  it  is  known  by  the  name  of  boi.s  dentelle. 
18 


206  ARBRE  A  CHEMISES. 


An  excellent  writing  paper  is  made  of  another  species  of 
Daphne  (D.  cannabina),  which  is  a  native  of  Cochin  China. 

ESTHER. 

And  then  there  are  the  bark  dresses  of  South  America,  the 
"  chemises  de  Marima,"  as  De  Humboldt  terms  them. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  tree  produces  them1? 

ESTHER. 

That  De  Humboldt  says  he  is  unable  to  determine,  but  he 
saw  trunks  of  the  "  arbre  a  chemises"*  more  than  fifty  feet 
long.  The  Indians  cut  them  into  cylindrical  pieces  of  two 
feet  in  diameter.  They  remove  the  red  fibrous  bark,  taking 
great  care  not  to  make  any  longitudinal  incisions.  The  bark 
furnishes  them  with  a  kind  of  garment,  resembling  sacks  of 
a  coarse  stuff.  The  larger  opening  serves  for  the  head,  and 
they  make  two  at  the  sides  for  arm-holes.  In  the  rainy  sea- 
sons the  natives  wear  these  garments,  which  have  the  form  of 
the  poncho,  or  South  American  dress.  As  in  these  climates 
the  richness  and  beneficence  of  nature  are  regarded  as  the 
first  causes  of  the  indolence  of  the  inhabitants,  the  mission- 
aries do  not  fail  to  say,  "  that  in  the  forests  of  the  Orinoco, 
garments  are  found  ready  made  upon  the  trees."  One  might 
add  to  this  story  the  pointed  caps,  formed  by  the  spathes  of 
certain  palm  trees,  and  which  resemble  a  net-work  of  coarse 
stitches. 

HENRIETTA. 

Like  the  caps  which  are  made  of  the  Talipot  tree. 

ESTHER. 

Or  the  flowers  of  the  Aristolochia,f  which  De  Humboldt 
found  upon  the  borders  of  the  Magdalena,  four  feet  in  circum- 
ference, and  which  the  Indian  children  amuse  themselves 
with  putting  upon  their  heads  as  caps. 

*  Huraboldt's  Voyage,  t.  viii.  t  Tableaux  de  la  Nature. 


PREPARATION  OF  THE  POISON.  207 

MRS.  F. 

Or  of  those  of  the  tree  in  question,  the  Upas  antiar;  for 
Sir  Stamford  Raffles  mentions  that  one  of  the  regents  had 
caps  or  bonnets  prepared  from  the  liber,  in  order  to  decorate 
his  attendants;  they  were  stiffened  with  rice  water,  and  hand- 
somely painted;  but  all  refused  to  wear  them,  asserting  that 
they  would  cause  the  hair  to  fall  off.  But  to  proceed  to  the 
poison  of  the  antiar.  It  is  curious,  that  although  this  irritat- 
ing property  of  the  bark  is  known  to  the  Javanese  in  all  the 
places  where  the  tree  grows,  yet  the  preparation  of  a  poison 
from  the  juice,  is  only  known  among  the  inhabitants  of  the 
eastern  extremity  of  the  island. 

ESTHER. 
Is  this  preparation  very  simple? 

MRS.  F. 

On  the  contrary,  an  eye-witness  describes  it  as  very  elabo- 
rate. He  saw  about  eight  ounces  of  the  juice,  which  had 
been  preserved  in  the  joint  of  a  bamboo,  strained  into  a  bowl; 
to  this  was  added  about  half  a  drachm  each,  of  a  number  of 
vegetable  substances,*  all  finely  grated  and  bruised.  The 
mixture  was  then  stirred,  and  a  seed  of  capsicum  (C.frutico- 
sum)  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  fluid.  The  seed  immedi- 
ately began  to  whirl  round  rapidly  for  about  a  minute,  when 
it  remained  completely  at  rest.  More  pepper  was  then  added 
and  another  capsicum  seed  placed  as  before;  a  similar  com- 
motion took  place  in  the  fluid,  but  in  a  diminished  degree; 
more  pepper  was  added  and  another  seed,  till,  on  the  fourth 
trial,  the  seed  remained  quiet  which  was  considered  as  a  sign 
that  the  preparation  was  complete.  The  poison  is  preserved 
in  close  vessels,  as  it  will  not  otherwise  keep. 

ESTHER. 
And  is  it  very  virulent  upon  all  animals? 

*  Viz.  Arum,  Kasmferia  galanga,  Amoraura,  onion,  garlic,  black 
pepper,  Sec. 


208  UPAS  TIENTE. 


Fowls  have  a  peculiar  capacity  to  resist  its  effects,  as  ap- 
pears from  some  experiments  which  were  tried,  in  which  a 
fowl  lived  four-and-twenty  hours  after  it  had  been  applied, 
and  some  recovered  entirely,  although  a  cat  had  been  killed 
by  it  in  fifteen  minutes,  and  a  buffalo  in  rather  more  than 
two  hours.  Having  now  fully  described  the  antiar,  let  us 
proceed  to  the  other  kind  of  Upas. 

HENRIETTA. 

The  tiente  — 

MRS.  F.' 

Or  Strychnos  tiente,*  is  a  kind  of  vine,  or  liane  as  the  French 
term  it.  Its  flowers  and  fruit  are  unknown;  the  stem  ascends 
the  highest  trees,  and  grows  only  in  close,  shady,  and  almost 
inaccessible  forests,  in  a  black,  fertile,  vegetable  mould.  It 
is  of  rare  occurrence,  and  is  neither  injurious  to  animal  nor 
vegetable.  No  juice  exudes  from  its  stem,  which  is  reddish, 
and  the  young  branches  are  occasionally  furnished  with  ten- 
drils. It  is  from  the  bark  of  the  root  that  the  gum  is  obtained, 
by  boiling,  and  it  is  prepared  with  nearly  the  same  ingre- 
dients as  the  antiar.  The  root  descends  two  feet  under 
ground,  and  then  extends  horizontally  for  several  feet.  It  is 
about  the  thickness  of  the  arm,  woody,  and  covered  with  a 
thin  bark  of  a  bitter  taste;  this  bark  furnishes  the  poison, 
which  is  only  to  be  obtained  by  boiling — for,  when  the  fresh 
root  is  cut,  a  quantity  of  water  runs  from  it,  without  taste, 
and  perfectly  harmless.  The  natives  make  more  mystery 
about  its  preparation  than  about  that  of  the  antiar;  and  its 
effects,  as  I  have  before  mentioned,  are  more  violent.  As 
soon  as  it  touches  the  blood,  it  is  felt  immediately,  causing 
excessive  burning,  fainting,  and  death. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  all  the  rest  which  is  said  about  the  Upas  is  false] 
*  Also  called  Chetik. 


POISONED  WEAPONS.  209 

MRS.  F. 

Entirely.  You  see,  from  what  I  have  told  you,  that 
Foersch's  account,  as  far  as  relates  to  the  situation  of  the 
tree,  to  its  effects  upon  the  surrounding  country,  and  to  the 
application  said  to  be  made  of  the  Upas  upon  criminals,  as 
well  as  the  description  of  the  poisonous  substance  itself,  and 
its  mode  of  being  collected,  all  prove  to  be  an  extravagant 
forgery;  at  the  same  time  that  its  effects  must  be  admitted  to 
be  of  equal  violence  with  almost  that  of  any  vegetable  poison 
known.  A  poisoned  arrow  of  bamboo,  to  the  end  of  which 
is  attached  a  shark's  tooth,  is  thrown  by  the  people  of  Ma- 
cassar, Borneo,  and  the  Eastern  Islands.*  Darts  of  arrows 
of  antiar  poison  were  employed  by  the  natives  of  Macassar, 
in  their  attack  on  Amboyna,  in  about  1650;  also,  by  the 
people  of  Celebes,  in  former  wars  with  the  Dutch;  but  after 
its  having  proved  mortal  to  many  of  their  soldiers,  the  Dutch 
discovered  an  infallible  remedy  in  the  roots  of  Radix  toxicaria 
(Rumphius).  The  Upas  is  also  used  to  mix  with  rice,  as  a 
bait  to  animals. 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  surely,  they  cannot  eat  them  afterwards? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  they  can;  for  the  flesh  is  not  poisonous,  excepting 
just  the  part  which  comes  in  contact  with  the  poison. f  It  is 
not  known  to  which  natural  order  of  plants  the  Upas  tiente 
belongs,  but  it  is  supposed  to  be  one  of  the  Apocinae,  which 
contains  many  poisonous  plants,  such  as  the  bean  of  St.  Ig- 
natius (Ignatia  amara),  mix  vomica  (Strychnus  nux  vomica), 
snake  wood,  &c. 

*  Rumphius  describes  the  Upas,  under  the  name  of  arbor  toxi- 
caria, and  thus  establishes  the  identity  of  the  poison  tree  of  Macas- 
sar and  the  other  Eastern  Islands  with  the  antiar  of  Java. 

t  The  above  account  of  the  two  kinds  of  Upas  is  taken  from 
Raffles's  Java.,  vol.  i.;  Diet,  des  Sciences  Naturelles;  .Leschen- 
ault,  &c. 

18* 


210  CURARE  POISON. 


Strychnus  Nux  vomica. 

ESTHER. 

And  is  not  the  wourali  poison  of  South  America  produced 
by  a  plant  of  the  same  family? 

MRS.  F. 

Probably;  but  nothing  decided  is  known  on  this  point,  Mr. 
Waterton,  whose  "  Wanderings  in  South  America"  you  may 
be  amused  in  reading,  having  been  unable  to  procure  speci- 
mens of  the  plant.  Nor  could  De  Humboldt  find  that  which 
produces  the  curare  poison,  in  flower,  so  as  to  enable  him  to 
determine  its  genus;  but,  from  its  appearance,  he  judged  it  to 
be  a  Strychnus. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  never  heard  of  this  poison. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  known  to  the  Otomacos  of  South  America,  who  poison 
their  thumb  nail  with  it;  and  so  rapid  are  its  effects,  that  the 
mere  impression  of  the  nail  is  mortal,  when  the  curare  mixes 
with  the  blood.  It  is  sold  in  calabashes,  and  is  of  about  the 
consistency  of  pitch;  the  best  comes  from  the  Esmeralda,and 
is  sold  for  about  two  shillings  an  ounce.* 

ESTHER. 

Is  it  the  same  as  the  wouralil 

*  Humboldt. 


OTHER  VEGETABLE  POISONS.  211 

MRS.  F. 

No;  there  are  many  poisons  used  by  the  different  South 
American  tribes,  such  as  the  wourara  or  wourali  of  Dutch 
Guyana,  the  curare  of  the  Oronoco,  and  the  ticuna  of  the 
Amazons,  all  varying  in  their  kinds.  Muriate  of  soda  (com- 
mon salt)  is  the  principal  antidote  employed,  but  no  proofs 
exist  of  its  efficacy. 

ESTHER. 

Dr.  Wallich  mentions  a  frightful  poison  extracted  from  a 
species  of  aconite  (Jlconitum ferox}  called  among  the  natives 
Visha  Bish;  which  he  states  to  be  as  universally  used,  and 
to  be  as  deleterious,  as  the  Upas. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  which  are  supposed  to  be  the  most  violent  vegetable 
poisons  known? 

MRS.  F. 

Upas  tiente,  the  poison  of  the  ticuna,  and  the  wourali;* 
but  many,  and  indeed  most  of  these,  naturalists  have,  as 
yet,  had  little  opportunity  of  examining.  That  in  use  at  the 
Cape,  for  instance,  where  the  Hottentots  poison  their  arrows 
with  a  species  of  Euphorbia,  and  also  with  a  large  bulbous  lily 
(Amaryllis  disticha},  which  grows  plentifully  about  the  Cape. 
The  natives  take  the  bulbs,  when  the  leaves  begin  to  shoot, 
cut  them  across,  and  leave  them  in  the  sun  until  they  acquire 
the  consistency  of  gum,  and  are  fit  for  use. 

ESTHER.  , 

For  what  purpose  are  these  poisons  employed1? 

MRS.  F. 

For  killing  antelopes  and  other  small  animals.  The  natives 
also  throw  large  pieces  into  the  pools  of  water  resorted  to  by 
the  wild  beasts;  the  animals  drink  and  die  immediately.  At 
the  Cape,  there  is  also  another  poison  which  is  much  used  by 

*  Humboldt,  Voyage,  t.  viii. 


212  PARYSATIS  AND  STAT1RA 

the  European  inhabitants;  it  is  called  the  wolf  poison,  and  is 
probably  a  species  of  Rhus.  The  nuts  are  roasted  like  coffee, 
pounded,  and  stuffed  into  small  pieces  of  meat;  these  are 
thrown  into  the  fields,  where  they  are  soon  found  by  the 
voracious  hyaenas  which  are  generally  killed  by  this  ex- 
pedient.* 

'  ESTHER. 

Your  speaking  of  poisonous  Euphorbias  reminds  me  of  the 
use  made  in  Ireland  of  a  British  species  {Euphorbia  hiberna). 
It  is  used  extensively  by  the  peasantry  in  the  county  of  Kerry 
for  poisoning  or  rather  stupefying  fish,  in  the  same  manner  as 
the  exotic  species  {Euphorbia  piscatoria}  is  employed  for  the 
same  purpose  by  the  negroes,  who  pound  the  leaves  between 
two  stones,  and  mix  them  with  cassada  paste.  So  power- 
ful are  the  qualities  of  the  Irish  Euphorbia,  that  a  small 
creel  or  basket  filled  with  the  bruised  plant  is  sufficent  to 
poison  the  fish  for  several  miles  down  a  river. 


I  have  heard  that  the  art  of  slow  poisoning  is  carried  to  a 
great  height  by  the  African  negroes  in  the  West  Indies. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is,  I  believe,  to  an  extent  of  which  we  can  form  little 
conception,  and  which  offers  but  few  parallels  in  civilised 
life. 

FREDERICK. 

That  was  an  ingenious  contrivance  of  Parysatis,  the  wicked 
queen  of  Darius  Nothus,  to  get  rid  of  her  rival  and  daughter- 
in-law  Statira.f  She  poisoned  one  side  of  the  knife  with 
which  she  helped  Statira  to  some  bird,  which  she  cut  in  two 
parts,  gave  one  half  to  Statira,  who  soon  after  died  of  con- 
vulsions, while  the  wicked  Parysatis  ate  the  other  half  her- 
self without  injury4 

*  Pattison's  Journey  to  the  Cape. 

t  Wife  of  Artaxerxes  Mnemon,  who  was  King  of  Persia  B.  c.  404. 

\  Rollin,  book  iv.  c.  2. 


MITHR1UATES.— CORNELIA.  213 

MRS.  F. 

The  ancients  must  have  been  well  acquainted  with  the  art 
of  compounding  subtile  poisons,  for  we  find,  for  instance,  that 
Mithridates,  and  other  celebrated  persons,  used  to  carry  poi- 
sons in  their  rings;  and  there  is  also  the  story  of  Cornelia, 
which,  though  doubtless  much  exaggerated,  must  probably 
have  been  founded  on  fact. 

FREDERICK. 

Which  Cornelia,  aunt1? 


Of  course,  I  do  not  mean  the  mother  of  the  Gracchi,  but  a 
Roman  lady  of  that  illustrious  family,  and  of  the  same  name, 
who,  with  many  others,  was  accused  (during  the  time  of  an 
epidemic  at  Rome)  of  preparing  poisons  from  which  numbers 
died.  When  brought  before  the  assembly  of  the  people,  the 
culprits  attested  that  they  had  only  administered  salutary 
remedies;  but  the  slave  who  had  informed  against  them,  de- 
manded that  they  should  swallow  their  own  potions.  His 
advice  was  adopted;  they  drank  the  poison,  and  all  expired, 
having  thus  probably,  escaped  a  more  severe  and  ignomini- 
ous punishment  at  the  hands  of  an  enraged  populace.* 


Then  there  was   also  another  instance  at  Rome,  in  the 
wicked  Tofania. 

MRS.  F. 

But  none   have  surpassed   in   wickedness  the   infamous 
Marquise  de  Brinvilliers  and  her  associates. 

ESTHER. 

That  is  the  person  whom  Madame  de  Sevigne  mentions  in 
her  letters. 

MRS.  F. 
It  is. 

*  B.  C.  331,  Biographic  Universelle. 


214  MARQUISE  DE  BRINVILLIEH8. 

HENRIETTA. 

Will  you  have  the  kindness   to  tell  us  about  her? 

MRS.  F. 

This  wretched  woman  was  rich  and  beautiful,  and  the  wife 
of  the  Marquis  de  Brinvilliers,  but  was  anxious  to  marry 
Sainte  Croix,  a  captain  in  the  army,  and  sought  only  to  get 
rid  of  her  husband,  in  order  to  accomplish  her  wicked  pur- 
pose. Her  father  caused  Sainte  Croix  to  be  shut  up  in  the 
Bastile,  where  he  became  acquainted  with  an  Italian  of  the 
name  of  Exill,  who  made  a  trade  of  poisons,  and  who  was 
one  of  those  who  were  concerned  in  the  death  of  more  than 
a  hundred  and  fifty  people  at  Rome,  during  the  pontificate  of 
Innocent  the  Tenth.  From  him  he  learned  the  secret  of  his 
horrid  art,  and  communicated  them  to  the  Marquise  de  Brinvil- 
liers, who  was  as  anxious  as  Sainte  Croix  to  revenge  herself 
upon  her  family.  Deaf  to  every  human  feeling,  this  wretched 
woman  first  tried  the  poisons  by  mixing  them  with  bis- 
cuits, which  she  distributed  to  the  poor:  she  then  poisoned 
her  father  and  her  two  brothers,  and  endeavored  to  destroy 
her  husband;  but  Saint  Croix,  disgusted  at  crimes  so  revolt- 
ing, did  not  wish  to  marry  a  woman  as  wicked  as  himself, 
and  as  often  as  she  gave  a  poison  to  her  husband,  Sainte  Croix 
administered  an  antidote,  so  that  he  survived  all  the  atrocious 
attempts  of  the  Marquise.  At  last  her  practices  were  discov- 
ered. Her  accomplice,  Sainte  Croix,  died  suddenly,  from 
the  following  accident.  The  poisons  which  he  prepared  were 
of  so  subtile  a  nature,  that  the  mere  inhaling  of  them  was 
fatal;  Sainte  Croix,  therefore,  always  worked  with  a  glass 
mask,  in  order  to  intercept  the  noxious  exhalations;  but  one 
day  the  mask  accidentally  fell  from  his  face,  and  he  was 
immediately  suffocated. 

HENRIETTA. 

Sainte  Croix's  mask  reminds  me  of  the  Iron  Mask. 

MRS.  F. 
We  will  talk  about  that  when  I  have  finished  my  account 


IRON  MASK.  215 

of  Brinvilliers.  On  examining  the  effects  of  Sainte  Croix, 
a  box  was  found  addressed  to  Madame  de  Brinvilliers,  but 
which  was  opened,  and  found  to  contain  a  collection  of 
poisons.  The  whole  tissue  of  their  crimes  was  discovered; 
the  Marquise  was  tried  and  condemned  to  be  beheaded,  her 
body  burned,  and  her  ashes  scattered  in  the  wind.  This  sen- 
tence was  executed  in  1676;  but  these  poisonings  continuing 
in  Paris,  even  after  her  death,  the  Chambre  ardent  was  estab- 
lished in  1699,  to  inquire  into  the  matter.  Many  were 
accused,  but  the  most  notorious  of  the  culprits  was  a  woman 
of  the  name  of  Voisin.  She  was  punished  with  death;  but 
the  public  mind  continued  for  a  long  time  to  be  disturbed  with 
ideas  of  poison,  and  many  natural  deaths  were  doubtless 
attributed  to  violence  and  poison.*  Now  I  have  finished  this 
frightful  history  of  crime,  let  us  hear,  Henrietta,  what  you 
have  to  tell  us  about  the  Iron  Mask. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  do  not  think,  aunt,  that  I  know  much  about  it,  except  that 
a  person  so  called  was  confined  in  the  Bastile  by  Louis  XIV, 
and  that  he  always  wore  an  iron  mask,  and  no  one  ever  could 
find  out  who  he  was. 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  pretty  nearly  all  that  is  known  about  this  singular 
individual,  who  has  given  rise  to  various  conjectures  respect- 
ing him,  some  imagining  him  to  be  of  royal  birth,  others 
merely  supposing  him  to  have  been  a  state  prisoner.  Who 
he  was  will  probably  ever  remain  a  mystery,  but  he  will  al- 
ways excite  the  greatest  interest,  and  a  curiosity  perhaps  the 
more  lively,  from  the  little  probability  there  exists  of  its  ever 
being  satisfied.  We  will  read  more  about  him  this  evening; 
but  in  the  meantime,  I  must  set  you  right  upon  the  common 
error  respecting  the  mask  which  he  wore.  It  was  made  not  of 
iron,  but  of  velvet,  and  the  chin  part  was  furnished  with  steel 

*  See  Mme.  de  Sevigne,  Causes  celebres,  Biographic  Universelle. 
The  account  of  the  first  must  be  received  with  caution,  and  due 
allowances  made  for  the  excitement  of  the  time. 


216  MAGNETIC  MASK. 

springs,  to  enable  him  to  eat  without  raising  it;  but  people 
supposing  the  mask  to  be  made  entirely  of  iron,  gave  its 
unfortunate  wearer  the  appellation  of  the  Iron  Mask,  by 
which  he  is  commonly  designated.* 

ESTHER. 

Now  that  we  are  on  the  subject  of  masks,  let  me  read  you 
an  account  of  the  magnetic  mask  which  I  met  with  yester- 
day.f 

"In  needle  manufactories,  the  workmen  who  point  the 
needles  are  constantly  exposed  to  excessively  minute  parti- 
cles of  steel,  which  fly  from  the  grindstones,  and  mix,  though 
imperceptible  to  the  eye,  as  the  finest  dust  in  the  air,  and  are 
inhaled  with  their  breath.  The  effect,  though  imperceptible 
on  a  short  exposure,  yet,  being  constantly  repeated  from  day 
to  day,  produces  a  constitutional  irritation,  dependent  on  the 
tonic  properties  of  steel,  which  is  sure  to  terminate  in  pulmo- 
nary consumption;  insomuch,  that  persons  employed  in  this 
kind  of  work  used  scarcely  ever  to  attain  the  age  of  forty 
years.  In  vain  was  it  attempted  to  purify  the  air  before  its 
entry  into  the  lungs  by  gauzes  or  linen  guards;  the  dust  was 
too  fine  and  penetrating  to  be  obstructed  by  such  coarse  ex- 
pedients, till  some  ingenious  person  bethought  him  of  that 
wonderful  power  which  every  child  who  searches  for  its 
mother's  needle  with  a  magnet,  or  admires  the  motions  and 
arrangements  of  a  few  steel  filings  on  a  sheet  of  paper  held 
above  it,  sees  in  exercise.  Masks  of  magnetised  steel  wire 
are  now  constructed  and  adapted  to  the  faces  of  the  workmen. 
By  these  the  air  is  not  merely  strained  but  searched  in  its  pas- 
sage through  them,  and  each  obnoxious  atom  arrested  and 
removed." 

MRS.  F. 

A  happy  instance  of  how  a  knowledge  of  the  laws  of 
nature  enables  us  to  improve  our  condition,  and  to  remedy 

*  Biographic  Universelle,  Siecle  de  Louis  XIV,  &c.  Mr.  Ellis  has 
also  written  the  "  History  of  the  Iron  Mask." 
t  Herschel's  Discourse. 


PELISSE.  217 

evils  the  most  serious  and  distressing.  But  we  must  now 
take  a  walk,  for  it  is  getting  late;  and  indeed  it  looks  so  much 
like  rain,  that  I  shall  put  on  my  pelisse.  By  the  by,  who 
can  tell  why  a  pelisse  is  so  called1? 

ESTHER. 

I  do  not  know,  mamma. 


From  pelhs,  skin;  hence  pellice,  pelisse;  they  having  origi- 
nally been  always  made  of,  or  lined  with,  fur. 


19 


218 
CHAPTER  XIV. 

NATIONAL  EMBLEMS. 

BADGES  OF  THE  SCOTCH  CLANS. — SHAMROCK.  — IRISH  HARP. — ROYAL 

SUPPORTERS. HERALDIC  VISITATIONS.  DISTINCTION    BETWEEN 

NOBILITY  AND  GELTILITY. — COMMONER. — HORSE,  SAXON,  KENTISH, 
HANOVERIAN,  CARTHAGINIAN,  AND  AGRIGENTINE. —  HORSE  AMONG 

THE  ANCIENT  GERMANS. RAVEN. SAGITTARIUS. PLANTAGENETS. 

FI.EUR  DE  LYS.  —  LILY  AND    THE    ROSE. — PAPAL    PRESENT.  

"  UNDER  THE  ROSE."  —  ROSE  OF    ENGLAND. — HAWTHORN. — SALA- 
MANDER, NATURAL  HISTORY  OF. 


Hail  to  the  chief  who  in  triumph  advances! 

Honored  and  blessed  be  the  ever-green  Pine ! 
Long  may  the  Tree  in  his  banner  that  glances, 

Flourish,  the  shelter  and  grace  of  our  line!" 

SCOTT. 


HENRIETTA. 

AUNT,  will  you  have  the  kindness  to  tell  me  what  gale  is, 
which  Mr.  Campbell  said  yesterday  was  the  badge  of  his 
clan? 

MRS.  F. 

The  sweet  gale,  or  bog  myrtle  (Myraca  gale],  is  a  shrub 
which  grows  abundantly  in  bogs  and  marshes,  and  the  leaves 
and  berries,  which  are  covered  with  resinous  dots,  exhale  a 
delightful  fragrance  when  rubbed  between  the  fingers.  The 
gale  is  abundant  in  Scotland,  where  it  is  the  favorite  retreat 
of  the  black  game.  Linnaeus  says  that  the  berries  boiled  in 
water,  yield  wax  like  those  of  the  candleberry  myrtle  (Myrica 
cerifera).  But  if  you  would  like  to  know  some  of  the  em- 


BADGES  OF  SCOTCH  CLANS.  219 

blems  of  the  different  Scotch  clans,  here  is  a  list  I  once  made 

of  all  which  I  was  able  to  collect: 

Buchanan  —  birch  (beatha,  Gaelic). 

Campbell  —  gale,  or  bog  myrtle  (Myrica  gale). 

Cameron —  oak  (darach,  Gaelic). 

Colquhoun  —  hazel. 

Gumming  —  sallow,  salix  (seileach,  Gaelic). 

Drummond  —  holly  (cre.il  thionn,  Gaelic). 

Forbes  —  broom  (Cytisus  scoparius). 

Ferguson  —  poplar. 

Gunn  —  rose-root  (Rhodiola  rosea). 

Grant  —  cranberry  (Vaccinium  oxycoccos). 

Macalister  —  fine-leaved  heath  (Erica  cinerea). 

Macdonald  —  cross-leaved  heath  (Erica  tetralix). 

Macdonell  —  ling  (Calluna  vulgaris). 

Macrae  —  savin-leaved  clubmoss  (Lycopodium  alpinum}* 

Macfarlane  —  cloudberry  (Rubus  chamaemorus}. 

Macgregor  —  pine. 

Maclachlan  —  mountain  ash  (Pyrus  aucuparia}. 

Maclean  —  crowberry  (Empetrum  nigrum). 

Macleod  —  red  whortleberry  (Vaccinium  vitisidsca}. 

Macnab  —  bramble  (Rubus}. 

Murray — juniper. 

Ogilvie  —  hawthorn  (Craisegus  oxyacanthd). 

Oliphant  —  maple. 

Robertson  —  brake,  or  bracken  (Pteris  aquilincb). 

Ross — arbutus. 

Sinclair  —  trefoil  (Trifolium). 

ESTHER. 

Thank  you,  mamma.  I  should  like  to  copy  this  list,  and 
will  try  to  add  the  badges  of  the  other  clans  which  you  do 
not  enumerate,  as  perhaps  I  may  get  some  of  our  Scotch  ac- 
quaintances to  tell  them  to  me. 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  the  trefoil,  aunt,  which  you  mention  as  the  emblem  of 
the  Sinclairs,  the  same  as  the  Irish  shamrock1? 


220  IRISH  HAIIP. 

MRS.  F. 

What  the  true  shamrock  is,  has  given  rise  to  many  learned 
disputations;  some  writers  identifying  it  with  Medicago 
maculata,  others  with  the  wood  sorrel  (Oxalis  acetosella), 
with  whose  elegant  little  spring  flower  you  are  all  well  ac- 
quainted. The  advocates  for  the  pretensions  of  this  plant, 
assert  that  the  clover  (Trifolium  repens]  is  not  a  common  wild 
plant  in  Ireland;  but  I  do  not,  I  confess,  trouble  myself  with 
this  controversy,*  being  content  to  receive,  as  the  real  sham- 
rock, that  which  is  worn  as  such  by  the  Irish  on  St.  Patrick's 
day. 

HENRIETTA. 

Pray,  aunt,  when  was  the  Irish  harp  introduced  into  the 
arms  of  the  king  of  England? 

MRS.  F. 

It  was  James  the  First  who  added  it  to  the  royal  achieve- 
ment; and  it  was  also  this  king  who  first  had  the  unicorn  as 
one  of  the  supporters  of  the  Royal  Arms. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  were  not  the  lion  and  the  unicorn  always  the  royal 
supporters? 

MRS.  F. 

No,  they  varied  much  with  the  different  sovereigns  —  Ed- 
ward III  had  a  lion  and  an  eagle;  Henry  IV,  a  white  ante- 
lope and  a  white  swan;  Henry  V  and  Henry  VI,  an  antelope 
and  a  lion;  Edward  IV,  a  black  bull  and  a  lion;  Edward  V,  a 
yellow  lion  and  a  white  lion. 

HENRIETTA. 

Aunt,  I  know  that  Richard  III  had  a  boar,  because  Shaks- 
peare  calls  him  "  the  boar,"  and  sometimes,  in  derision,  the 
"  hog." 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  a  white  boar  was  the  crest  of  the  York  family,  and 
*  See  Journal  of  Royal  Institution. 


ROYAL  SUPPORTERS.  221 

was  borne  by  Richard,  with  a  yellow  lion.  Henry  VII  had 
a  lion  and  a  red  dragon;  Hery  VIII,  Mary,  and  Elizabeth,  all 
bore  a  lion  and  greyhound;  but  when  James  I  came  to  the 
throne,  he  added  the  unicorn,  which  was  the  arms  of  Scot- 
land, and  this,  with  the  lion,  have,  since  his  reign,  always 
been  the  supporters  of  the  British  Arms. 

ESTHER. 

Who  is  it,  mamma,  that  are  entitled  to  bear  supporters  to 
their  arms'?  I  thought  it  had  been  only  peers,  but  I  see  that 
there  are  many  others  who  do  so. 

MRS.  F. 

Supporters  are  used  by  all  peers,  and  are  also  borne  by 
their  eldest  sons  (if  above  the  degree  of  baron),  but^the 
younger  sons  are  not  allowed  to  use  them.  The  practice  of 
the  kings  of  England  granting  supporters  to  the  peers  of 
each  degree,  began  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII,  as  did  that  of 
giving  them  to  the  Knights  of  the  Garter  and  of  the  Bath. 
The  Nova  Scotia  baronets  are,  by  their  patents  of  creation, 
allowed  to  carry  them,  although  the  same  privilege  was  not 
ex-tended  to  the  English  baronets,  at  the  time  of  the  institu- 
tion of  the  dignity,  it  being  only  by  virtue  of  a  royal  licence 
that  any  of  the  baronets  bear  them.  Another  curious  anomaly 
with  regard  to  supporters  is,  that  the  kings  of  arms  in 
England  are  not  authorised,  without  a  royal  warrant,  to 
grant  supporters  to  any  one  below  the  dignity  of  Knight  of 
the  Bath,  and  yet  Lyon  King  of  Arms,  in  Scotland,  may, 
by  virtue  of  his  office,  grant  them  without  the  royal  warrant, 
and  has,  indeed,  on  some  occasions,  exercised  his  privilege.* 

ESTHER. 

I  have  read  that  the  custom  of  having  supporters  to  arms 
originated  in  the  ancient  practice  at  tilts  and  tournaments,  of 
knights  causing  their  shields  to  be  carried  by  servants  or 
pages,  under  the  disguise  of  lions,  griffons,  Moors,  &c.,  who 
also  held  and  guarded  the  escutcheons  which  the  knights 

*  Clarke's  Heraldry. 
19* 


222  DISTINCTION  BETWEEN 

were  obliged  to  expose  to  public  view  some  time  before  the 
lists  were  opened.  Pray.,  mamma,  do  heralds  now  go  round 
to  register  the  arms  of  the  different  families,  as  they  used  for- 
merly to  do1? 

MRS.  F. 

No;  that  custom  has  been  abandoned;  the  earliest  visitation 
was  in  1529,  the  latest  in  1686. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  was  their  object] 

MRS.  F. 

These  visitations  were  conducted  every  thirty  years  by 
Norroy  in  the  north,  and  by  Clarenceux  in  the  south  of 
England.  On  these  occasions  each  of  these  kings  at  arms, 
attended  by  their  suite,  summoned  the  neighboring  gentry  to 
their  county  town,  to  have  enregistered  the  births,  deaths, 
and  marriages  that  had  occurred  in  their  families  since  their 
last  visitation.  Such  persons  as  had  usurped  titles  or  digni- 
ties, or  had  borne  ensigns  of  gentility  which  did  not  belong 
to  them,  were  obliged,  under  their  own  hands,  to  disclaim  all 
pretence  or  title  to  them,  and,  for  their  presumption,  they 
were  moreover  degraded  by  proclamation  made  by  the  com- 
mon  town  crier,  in  the  market  place  nearest  to  their  abode; 
and,  under  the  names  of  these  plebeians  who  had  assumed 
coats  of  arms,  was  written  "ignobiles."* 

ESTHER. 

What  confusion,  what  stripping  of  borrowed  plumes  would 
such  a  visitation  cause  now,  when  so  many  assume  arms  to 
which  they  have  no  title,  and  all  style  themselves  "  gentle- 


Yes;  it  is  quite  absurd  to  see  how  indiscriminately  the  title 
is  applied;  but  I  believe  that  this  abuse  of  it  is  mostly  con- 
fined to  England.  In  France  they  are  not  so  ridiculous;  on 

*  Lawrence  on  the  Nobility  of  the  English  Gentry. 


NOBILITY  AND  GENTILITY.  223 

the  contrary,  when  the  king  holds  a  court,  it  is  thus  an- 
nounced: "  Demain  matin,  le  Roi  recevra  les  hommes  et  les 
femmes;"  and  when  he  addresses  the  united  Chambers  of 
Peers  and  Deputies,  he  styles  them  "  Messieurs."  In  short, 
there  is  no  degradation  to  persons  of  quality  to  be  called  men 
and  women,-  but,  by  following  up  a  different  system,  and  call- 
ing a  mixed  society  "  gentlefolks,"  we  have  destroyed  the 
true  meaning  of  the  word  in  England.* 

FREDERICK. 

Then  what  is,  after  all,  the  true   meaning  of  the  term 
"  gentleman?" 


That  is,  perhaps,  rather  a  difficult  question  to  answer,  but 
I  will  endeavor  to  explain  it  as  well  as  I  am  able,  Accord- 
ing to  an  old  writer,  |  "  Gentlemen  be  those  whom  their  blood 
and  race  doth  make  noble  or  known."  "The  Commonwealth 
of  England  is  governed  by  three  sorts  of  persons:  the  sove- 
reign; the  Gentlemen  (which  are  divided  into  two  parts  -^  the 
Barony  or  estate  of  Lords,  and  those  which  be  no  Lords,  as 
knights,  esquires,  and  simple  gentlemen);  the  third  and  last 
sort  of  persons  are  named  Yeomen." 

ESTHER. 

Then  this  division  identifies  noblemen  and  gentlemen  in 
the  same  class. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes.  Nobility  means  notability;  noble  is,  worthy  of 
notice  or  being  known.  Any  individual  who  distinguishes 
himself  may  be  said  to  ennoble  himself.  A  prince  judging  him 
worthy  of  notice,  may  give  him  letters  of  nobility.  Nobility, 
therefore,  may  be  acquired — gentility  must  be  innate.  No- 
blemen may  be  only  persons  of  rank  and  distinction,  but 
gentlemen  must  be  persons  of  family  and  quality,  inasmuch 

*  Lawrence  on  the  Nobility  of  the  English  Gentry, 
t  Sir  T.  Smith,  who  died  in  1577. 


224  TRUE  NOBILITY.  —  COMMONER. 

as  it  comprises  birth  as  well  as  notability.     Gentility,  there- 
fore, is  obviously  superior  to  nobility. 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  I  well  recollect  the  answer  of  James  I,  who  when 
asked  by  his  nurse  to  make  her  son  a  gentleman,  replied, 
"  My  good  woman,  a  gentleman  I  could  never  make  him, 
though  I  could  make  him  a  lord;"  thus  marking  the  distinc- 
tion you  have  just  drawn  between  the  two  appellations. 

MRS.  F. 

I  have  been  the  more  particular  in  enforcing  this  distinction 
upon  your  attention,  because  it  is  among  the  gentry,  not 
among  the  peers,  that  we  must  seek  the  true  nobility  of 
England.  There  are,  perhaps,  not  above  four  to  five  hundred 
peers  in  Great  Britain,  but  there  are  upwards  of  thirteen 
thousand  of  ancient  nobility.  The  landed  proprietors  are,  in 
every  country,  the  natural  nobility;  hence,  in  the  opinion  of 
the  genealogist,  those  families  whose  names  are  the  same  as 
their  estates,  such  as  Ratcliffe  of  Ratcliffe,  Wolseley  of 
Wolseley,  &c.,  are  the  noblest  families  in  their  respective 
provinces.  Could  any  title  add  to  the  nobility  of  the  Wynns, 
or  to  that  of  the  Hampden,  upon  whose  tomb  is  inscribed 
"  John  Hampdon,  24th  hereditary  Lord  of  Great  Hampden?" 
Hence  some  of  the  old  writers  very  properly  speak  of  the  no- 
bility named  and  unnamed,  that  is,  titled  and  untitled. 


One  question  more,  if  you  please,  mamma;  what  is  the 
meaning  of  the  term  "commoner?" 

MRS.  F. 

In  a  legal  sense,  all  are  commoners  who  are  amenable  or 
subject  to  common  tribunals;  the  peers,  therefore,  are  not 
commoners,  because  they  are  their  own  judges,  this  being  an 
exclusive  privilege,  but  no  proof  of  nobility;  for  many  persons 
who  have  precedency  over  peers  are  subject  to  the  common 
law. 


HORSE  IN  HERALDRY.  225 

HENRIETTA. 

Will  you  give  us  some  examples,  aunt/? 

MRS.  F. 

Not  only  the  sons  of  dukes  and  marquises,  but  even  the 
princes  of  the  blood,  arid  sons  of  the  king1,  if  accused  before 
they  are  made  peers,  must  be  tried  by  common  juries.  So  also 
would  prince  Leopold  (the  present  king  of  Belgium),  who, 
having  no  peerage,  ranks  as  the  first  commoner,  and  is  ame- 
nable to  common  courts  accordingly.*  But  now  that  I  hope  1 
have  made  these  distinctions  sufficiently  clear  to  you,  sup- 
pose we  return  to  our  original  subject,  the  arms,  or  rather 
emblems  which  have  been  adopted,  at  different  times,  by  the 
various  rulers  of  England.  To  begin  then  by  the  Saxons, 
what  was  theirs  ? 

HENRIETTA. 

A  horse;  and  it  is  still  the  arms  of  the  county  of  Kent, 
for  we  see  the  horse  rampant,  on  all  the  pockets  of  Kentish 
hops. 

ESTHER. 

And  it  has  also  re-appeared  in  the  English  arms,  in  the 
running  Hanoverian  horse,  which  was  added  to  the  royal 
achievement,  in  an  escutcheon  of  pretence,  on  the  accession 
of  George  I. 

MRS.  F. 

But  gently;  I  have  much  more  to  say  about  the  horse,  be- 
fore we  descend  to  such  modern  times. 

FREDERICK. 

The  Carthaginians  had  a  horse  upon  their  coins,  and  the 
Agrigentines  used  to  pay  funeral  honors  to  those  horses  which 
were  victorious  in  the  Olympic  games;  and  indeed  writer 
assert  that  they  erected  monuments  to  their  memory. 

*  Lawrence. 


HOKSE  AMONG  THE  GERMANS. 


Well  remembered,  Frederick;  but  it  was  among  the  Ger- 
mans that  the  horse  was  a  particular  favorite.  Being  essen- 
tially a  warlike  people,  devoted  to  the  chase,  and  indifferent 
to  agricultural  pursuits,  it  formed  an  important  part  of  their 
property.  Superstition  also  had  a  great  part  in  the  value 
which  the  Germans  attached  to  their  horses.  They  used  to 
sacrifice  them,  and  they  also  employed  them  to  predict  the 
future.  Those  which  were  consecrated  to  this  latter  use 
were  quite  white,  had  never  been  used  for  labor,  and  were 
fed  in  the  sacred  woods  which  served  them  as  temples.  On 
stated  occasions  they  were  harnessed  to  a  car  appropriated  to 
that  purpose,  and  also  considered  as  sacred.  The  king,  the 
prince,  or  the  priest  of  the  people  accompanied  them  and  pre- 
dicted the  future  by  their  neighings. 

FREDERICK. 

It  was  by  the  neighing  of  his  horse  that  Darius  (father  of 
Xerxes)  gained  the  throne  of  Persia. 

MRS.  F. 

True;  but  to  return  to  the  Germans:  their  laws  prove  the 
value  that  they  set  upon  their  horses;  the  fine  for  stealing  one 
being  forty-five  pence,  while  it  was  only  thirty-five  for  steal- 
ing a  slave.  A  man,  after  he  was  unable  to  carry  arms  and 
ride  on  horseback,  was  considered  to  be  no  longer  fit  to  live, 
and  was  incapacitated  from  disposing  of  his  property.  The 
gigantic  horse  cut  out  of  the  chalk  bank,  which  still  exists  in 
the  south-west  of  the  hill,  near  Edrington,  in  Berkshire,  and 
which  occupies  an  acre  of  ground,  and  may  be  seen  in  some 
points  at  a  distance  of  twelve  miles,  is  supposed  to  have  been 
cut  at  some  later  period  in  commemoration  of  the  victory 
gained  there  by  Alfred  over  the  Danes.* 

ESTHER. 

Did  not  the  chiefs  often  take  the  name  of  a  horse?  Horsa 
for  instance? 

*  Wheatman's  History  of  the  Northmen. 


RAVEN.  227 

MRS.   F. 

Yes;  and  Hengist  also>  both  names  signifying  a  horse  in 
the  Anglo-Saxon  language.  Indeed  all  the  names  ending  in 
mar  or  wer,  such  as  VValdemar,  Hincmar,  &c.,  appear  to  be 
derived  from  some  names  of  horses. 

ESTHER. 

The  Germans  used  to  eat  horse  flesh. 

MRS.  P. 

Yes,  and  esteemed  it  one  of  their  favorite  'dishes.  St. 
Boniface*  addressed  Pope  Gregory  III,  to  know  what  course 
he  should  pursue,  and  the  Pope  desired  him  to  prohibit  it;  but 
it  was  not  easy  to  make  the  Germans  listen  to  this  prohibition, 
and  it  required  fresh  injunctions  from  the  succeeding  Pope  to 
induce  them  to  discontinue  this  repast,  it  being  accompanied 
by  a  similar  prohibition  with  respect  to  hares,  beavers,  storks, 
and  crows,  which  were  all  eaten  by  the  Germans,  f  But  we 
are  digressing  very  far  from  our  subject;  now,  who  will  tell 
us  the  Danish  standard? 

MARY. 
The  Raven. 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  during  the  reign  of  Alfred,  when  the  Saxons  defeated 
the  Danish  fleet,  which,  under  Hubba,  had  blockaded  them 
in  the  castle  of  Kynwith,  in  Devonshire,  and  Hubba  himself 
was  slain,  they  obtained,  in  addition  to  an  immense  booty, 
the  famous  magical  standard  of  the  Rea/en,  the  loss  of  which 

*  St.  Boniface  (better  known  as  St.  Winifred),  a  native  of  Devon- 
shire, and  the  apostle  of  the  Germans.  In  71 6  he  gained  permission 
of  the  Pope  to  preach  the  gospel  in  Germany,  of  which  country  he 
was  made  primate,  and  he  afterwards  converted  Pepin.  To  him, 
the  Germans  are  under  the  greatest  obligations.  He  preached  Chris- 
tianity amongthem,  procured  them  teachers  in  religion  and  in  science, 
abolished  the  use  of  horse  flesh,  and  did  not  shrink  from  laying  down 
his  life  in  the  cause,  being  massacred  in  755. 

t  Schmidt,  Histoire  des  Allemands,  Vol.  i. 


228  SACRED  BIRDS. 

was  a  fatal  presage  to  the  Danes.  This  banner,  adorned 
with  the  figure  of  a  raven,  is  said  to  have  been  woven  by 
Hubba's  sisters  in  one  noontide.  It  was  believed  that  the 
bird  appeared  as  if  flying  when  the  Danes  were  to  conquer, 
but  was  motionless  when  they  were  threatened  with  defeat.* 

MRS.  F. 

The  raven  is,  I  know  not  why,  considered  as  the  emblem 
of  constancy,  and  is,  among  the  Swedes,  as  sacred  a  bird  as 
the  stork  among  the  Dutch. 

ESTHER. 

Or  the  crane  among  the  Calmucs;  for  I  was  reading  in  the 
travels  of  some  Russian  missionaries,  that,  when  their  ser- 
vant shot  a  crane,  the  greatest  horror  was  expressed  by  the 
bystanders,  who  quoted  an  old  proverbial  saying  among  the 
Calmucs,  that  "  the  man  who  killed  a  crane  would  be  pun- 
ished by  fate."  They  prophesied  great  misfortunes  for  the 
deed  upon  the  servant,  who  was  at  last  so  intimidated  by  their 
denunciations,  that  it  was  some  time  before  his  master  could 
calm  his  apprehensions. 

MRS.  F. 

Thank  you,  Esther;  but  now  let  us  endeavor  to  proceed 
with  our  emblems.  That  of  Stephen  comes  next,  which  was 
a  Sagittarius,  because  he  entered  England  when  the  sun  was 
in  that  sign  of  the  zodiac. 

Then  it  must  have  been  in  the  month  of  November. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  and  another  reason  assigned  for  his  adopting  it  is 
that  he  obtained  a  great  victory  chiefly  by  help  of  his  archers. 
Stephen,  therefore,  took  this  sign  for  his  arms,  and  discontin- 
ued bearing  his  paternal  arms. 

ESTHER. 
We  now  come  to  the  Plantagenets. 

*  Wheatman's  History  of  the  Northmen. 


FLEUR  DE  LYS.  229 

MRS.  F. 

Who  bore  the  Genista  or  broom  as  their  device.  Ft  was 
first  adopted  by  the  grandfather  of  Henry  II,  Fulk,  Count  of 
Anjou,  who  bore  the  broom  branch  in  his  pilgrimage  to  the 
Holy  Land.  From  this  circumstance  the  name  of  Plantage- 
net  (Ptanta- genista,  or  genet  in  French,)  descending  to  our 
kings. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  what  made  him  fix  upon  the  broom"? 

MRS.  F. 

Because  ifc  was  the  fittest  emblem  of  humility;  the  brick 
and  marble  floors,  which  were  then  strewed  with  rushes  or 
odoriferous  herbs,  being,  in  the  season,  covered  with  the  fra- 
grant flowers  of  the  broom.  When  Louis  IX  married  Margaret 
of  Anjou,  he  instituted  an  order  of  knighthood;  but  in  token  of 
his  humility,  he  adopted  the  broom  flower,  which,  with  the 
fleur  de  lys,  was  enamelled  alternately  on  the  collar.  The 
motto  was  "  Humiles  exaltat." 

FREDERICK. 

That  is,  "  He  exalts  the  humble." 


Edward   III,  as  you  all  know,  was  the  first  to  assume  the 

fleurs  de  lys  in  the  royal  escutcheon.  He  bore  them  (what  the 

heralds  term)  semee,  that  is,  irregularly  strewed  over  the  field, 

without  any  regard   to   number.      It  was    Charles  VI,   of 

France,  that  first  reduced  their  number  to  three. 


ESTHER. 


Thefleur  de  lys  is   a  very  ancient  symbol.     In  the  temple 
of  Dendera,  among  the  hieroglyphics,  is  frequently  to  be 
seen  a  sceptre,  surmounted  by  a  fleur  de  lys,  resembling  ex- 
20 


230  VLKVR  DE  LV8. 

actly  that  of  the  kings  of  Franco.*  In  several  eastern 
countries  it  was  the  emblem  of  power;  iho  kings  of  Syria  and 
Habylon  bore  it  at  the  end  of  their  sceptre:  and  Moniiaiiron 
mentions  a  manuscript  of  the  tenth  century,  in  which  is 
engraved  a  figure  of  David,  with  a  sceptre  surmounted  by  a 
Jlcur  de  ly», 

HENRIETTA. 

But  thejlcur  dc  ly»  is  not  like  a  lily. 

MRS.  F. 

Many  and  various  are  the  hypotheses  concerning  the  origin 
of  this  emblem:  some  say  it  is  the  head  of  a  French  battle 
axe;  others,  the  iron  of  a  French  javelin  or  spear  head;  while 
those  who  advocate  its  floral  origin  consider  it  to  be  the  repre- 
sentation of  the  common  Iris,  or  Flower  de  Luce,  which 
when  two  of  the  petals  are  viewed  in  profile,  and  the  third 
fully  expanded,  offers  a  fancied  resemblance  to  the  Jlcur  de 
lya.  Louis  VII,  when  engaged  in  the  second  crusade,  took 
this  figure  for  his  arms;  and  as  the  common  people  gene- 
rally contracted  //out*  into  IAICC,  it  is  natural  to  imagine  that 
this  flower  was,  by  corruption,  distinguished,  in  time,  by  the 
name  of  the  Flower  de  Luce,  or  Louis.  When  Louis 
VII  caused  his  son  Philip  Augustus  to  be  inaugurated  at 
Rheims,  he  had  all  his  clothes  embroidered  with  the  Jleur 
de  /y..t 

ESTHER. 

The  lily  and  the  rose  have,  from  high  antiquity,  been  usual 
as  emblems  of  the  Church,^  and  generally  accompany, 
either  separately  or  together,  the  paintings  of  the  Virgin 
Mary. 

*  Sonnini'g  Travels. 

t  La  Pluche,  Spectacle  de  la  Nature. 

\  "  I  am  the  rose  of  Sharon  and  the  lily  of  the  valley,"  &c. 


"  UNDER  THE  ROSE."  231 

MBS.  P. 

A  rose  was  the  seal  of  Luther,  and  a  golden  rose  was  often 
tin;  present  of  the  popes  to  a  favoured  sovereign. 


ESTHER. 

Yes;  I  recollect  reading  that  one  was  sent  by  Alexander 
III,  to  William  King  of  Scotland;  another  by  Alexander  VI, 
to  Henry  VIII.* 

MRS.  r. 

And  another  by  Innocent  X,  in  1651,  to  Louisa  of  Gonza- 
gua,  the  queen  of  John  Casimir,  King  of  Poland,  at  the  same 
time  that  he  presented  the  king  with  a  consecrated  sword  and 
banner,f  The  rose  was  considered  as  an  emblem  of  the 
mortality  of  the  body,  the  gold  of  which  it  was  made,  of  the 
immortality  of  the  soul. 

FREDERICK. 

The  rose  was  dedicated  to  Aurora,  as  an  emblem  of 
youth. 

MRS.  v. 

And  to  Cupid,  because  of  its  fugacity,  as  Tasso  expresses 
it: 

"  Cosi  trapasta  al  trapatwr  d'ungiorno 
Delia  vita  mortale,  it  fior  e  '1  verde." 

G.  L.  c.  XTI.  13. 

But  did  you  ever  hear  the  origin  of  the  term  "  under  the 
rose"  as  an  indication  of  secrecy  1  It  is  an  expression 
you  may  probably  never  have  heard,  but  I  allude  to  it  on  ac- 
count of  the  custom  which  gave  rise  to  it.  Cupid  is  said  to 
have  given  a  rose  as  a  bribe  to  Harpocrates,  God  of  Silence; 
from  this  originated  a  practice  which  prevailed  among  the 


*  Clark'*  Travel*  in  the  Holy  Land, 
f  Salvaudy,  Hirtoire  de  Pologrie,  vol.  i. 


232  HAWTHORN. 

northern  nations,  of  suspending  a  rose  from  the  ceiling  over 
the  upper  end  of  their  tables,  when  it  was  intended  that  the 
conversation  which  took  place  should  be  sacred  to  secrecy. 
It  is  this  custom,  undoubtedly,  which  first  gave  rise  to  the 
common  expression  "under  the  rose."* 

FREDERICK. 

The  white  rose  sprang  from  the  tears  of  Venus;  the  red 
from  a  wound  she  received  from  a  thorn  in  her  foot  when 
running  about  the  woods  in  search  of  Adonis.  But  you  have 
not  yet  alluded  to  it,  aunt,  in  the  wrars  of  the  houses  of  York 
and  Lancaster. 

MRS.  F. 

They  were  first  assumed  by  John  of  Gaunt  and  his  brother 
Edward  Duke  of  York,  from  whom  the  two  rival  houses 
descended,  and  who  therefore  took  them  as  their  distinctive 
badges,  until  the  termination  of  the  civil  war  by  the  marriage 
of  Elizabeth  of  York  with  Henry  VII;  when  the  two  roses 
united  in  one  became  the  royal  badge  of  England.  The  rose 
or  rosette  to  the  shoe  was  worn  under  the  house  of  Tudor, 
but  declined  under  the  Stuarts,  when  the  fashion  of  shoe- 
strings arose.  I  think  there  is  now  only  one  English 
emblem  which  we  have  not  mentioned,  and  that  is,  the  haw- 
thorn. 

HENRIETTA. 

When  was  that  used? 

MRS.  F. 

We  have  mention  made  of  it  at  the  meeting  of  the  Field 
of  the  Cloth  of  Gold.  It  had  been  a  popular  emblem  among 
the  English  since  the  battle  of  Bosworth  Field,  from  the 
circumstance  of  the  crown  of  Richard  having  been  found  on 
that  day  lying  under  a  hawthorn  bush,  whence  it  was  taken  to 

*  Medical  Botany. 


THE  SALAMANDER.  .  933 

place  it  upon  the  head  of  Henry  VII.  Who  can  tell  me  what 
was  the  device  of  Francis  I,  at  that  famous  meeting  with 
Henry  VIII? 

ESTHER. 

I  do  not  know,  mamma. 

MRS.  F. 

It  was  the  salamander,  with  the  motto  "  I  cherish  the  good 
and  extinguish  the  bad." 

FREDERICK. 

But,  aunt,  it   is  not  true  that  salamanders  can  live  in  the 
fire? 

MRS.  F. 

No  ;  but  the  idea  is  not  so  destitute  of  foundation  as  we 
commonly  suppose.  Bosc,  a.  French  naturalist,  says,  that 
salamanders  emit  from  their  skin  a  lubricating,  white  fluid, 
when  they  are  annoyed;  and,  if  put  into  the  fire,  it  sometimes 
happens  that  this  fluid  extinguishes  it  sufficiently  to  permit 
the  animal  to  escape.  When  touched,  the  skin  of  the  terres- 
trial salamander  will  transude  the  white  fluid,  which  is 
extremely  acrid,  and  produces  a  very  painful  sensation  upon 
the  tongue.  It  sometimes  throws  it  out  to  the  distance  of 
several  inches;  the  scent  of  this  fluid  is  very  disagreeable,  and 
will  poison  small  animals,  although  it  does  not  appear  to 
affect  large  ones.  Mr.  Kirby  relates  the  following  anecdote 
in  support  of  the  above  account: — Some  ladies  at  Newbury 
had  a  very  damp  cellar  which  was  frequented  by  frogs,  and 
a  kind  of  newt  or  salamander  of  a  dull  black  color.  Several 
frogs  were  put  into  a  pail,  and  while  the  ladies  were  looking 
one  frog  after  another  turned  itself  on  its  back,  its  legs  stiffened 
and  it  died.  One  of  these  efts  they  found  running  quickly 
amongt  he  frogs,  each  of  which,  when  touched,  died  instantly, 
the  animals  evincing  the  greatest  horror  at  their  enemies.  — 
A  few  nights  afterwards,  one  of  these  efts  was  found  in  the 
kitchen,  and  the  cook  took  it  up  with  the  tongs  and  threw  it 
20* 


234  THE  SALAMANDER. 

into  a  good  fire.  The  reptile  slipped,  like  lightning,  through 
the  coals,  and  ran  away  apparently  unhurt.  Thus  we  see 
there  is  some  degree  of  truth  in  the  fable  of  the  salamander, 
and,  indeed,  we  shall  find,  that  most  of  the  imaginary  ac- 
counts of  the  ancients  rest  upon  some  foundation,  however 
slight  it  may  be. 


235 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE    GIPSIES. 

GIPSIES.  —  HINDOO  ORIGIN.  — MAJOR  KEPPEL's  ACCOUNT  OF  THEM. — 
ROGERS's  DESCRIPTION.  —  SORTES  VIRGILIAN.E,  HOMERIC^}  AND 
SANCTORUM.  —  ROMAN  NUMBER  SIX.  —  NINE  OF  DIAMONDS.  — 
YEAR  88. —  COUNTESS  OF  ALBANY. —  LAST  OF  THE  STUARTS. — 
TOMB  IN  ST.  PETER'S.  —  THE  LADY  ARABELLA.  —  QUEEN  ELIZA- 
BETH. —  HER  VANITY  AND  LOVE  OF  DRESS.  — ANECDOTES  OF  HER 

COURT. LEARNED  LADIES. —  ANNE  OR  CLEVES. ANGLO-SAXON 

NEEDLEWORK. SPINSTERS. HYPATIA. VITTORIA  COLONNA. — 

HELEN    CORNARO    PISCOPIA.  —   NOVELLA    D'ANDREA.  —  CLOTILDA 
TAMBRONI. — LAURA  BASSI.  —  AGNESI. — ENGLISH  FEMALE  SCIENCE. 


"  I  see  a  column  of  slow-rising  smoke 
O'ertop  the  lofty  wood  that  skirts  the  wild. 
A  vagabond  and  useless  tribe  there  eat 
Their  miserable  meal.     A  kettle,  slung 
Between  two  poles  upon  a  stick  tranverse, 
Receives  the  morsel —          * 

Hard-faring  race ! 

They  pick  their  fuel  out  of  every  hedge, 
Which,  kindled  with  dry  leaves,  just  saves  unquench'd 
The  spark  of  life.     The  sportive  wind  blows  wide, 
Their  flutt'ring  rags,  and  shows  a  tawny  skin, 
The  vellum  of  the  pedigree  they  claim. 
Great  skill  have  they  in  palmistry,  and  more 
To  conjure  clean  away  the  gold  they  touch, 
Conveying  worthless  dross  into  its  place; 
Loud,  when  they  beg,  dumb  only  when  they  steal." 

COWPER'S  TASK. 


MARY. 

MAMMA,  there's  a  gipsy  at  the  door;  may  I  have  my  fortune 
told? 


236  GIPSIES. 

MRS.  F. 

Indeed,  Mary,  I  cannot  consent  to  anything  so  foolish  and 
so  wrong.  So,  take  off  your  bonnet,  and  I  will  give  you 
some  account  of  this  idle  race. 

MARY. 

Where  do  they  come  from? 

HENRIETTA. 

From  Egypt,  to  be  sure. 

MRS.  F. 

Gently,  Henrietta;  do  not  decide  with  such  confidence  upon 
a  subject  on  which  the  learned  are  so  much  in  doubt.  Be- 
sides, even  if  you  had  been  correct,  a  little  more  modesty  had 
-been  more  becoming.  I  am  always  pleased  when  you  are 
able  to  give  a  ready  answer  to  my  inquiries;  but  believe 
me,  that  knowledge  is  of  little  good  unless  it  lead  to  that  true 
wisdom  which  teaches  us  to  think  humbly  of  ourselves.  The 
truly  wise,  are  always  the  most  humble,  because,  the  more 
they  learn,  the  more  sensible  they  are  of  how  little  they 
know.  Sir  Isaac  Newton's  opinion  of  his  own  splendid  re- 
sults you  all  know,*  and  Solon,  one  of  the  wisest  of  heathen 
philosophers,  declared,  that  all  he  had  learned  from  his  know- 
ledge was,  "  that  he  knew  nothing."  But,  to  return  to  the 
gipsies: — Grellman,  a  German  author,  who  had  entered  into 
a  minute  investigation  of  the  subject,  supposes  them  to  be  of 
Hindoo  origin,  probably  of  the  lowest  castes,  a  conjecture 
which  he  founds  upon  the  similarity  of  language  between  the 
Egyptians  and  the  Hindoos. 


Do  not  these  gipsies  speak  English] 

*  "  I  know  not,"  said  he,  "  what  the  world  will  think  of  my  la- 
bors, but,  to  myself,  it  seems  that  I  have  been  but  as  a  child  playing 
on  the  sea-shore,  now  finding  some  pebble  rather  more  polished, 
and  now  some  shell  rather  more  agreeably  variegated  than  another, 
while  the  immense  ocean  of  truth  extended  itself  unexplored  hefore 


THEIR  MIGRATION.  237 

MRS.  F. 

Not  among  themselves;  they  then  converse  in  a  jargon  or 
language  unintelligible  to  others.  There  appears  to  be  a 
striking  coincidence  in  the  grammatical  construction  of  the 
Hindoo  and  gipsy  language;  many  of  their  manners  and  cus- 
toms closely  resemble  each  other,  and  Grellman  collected 
four  hundred  words  from  the  gipsies,  all  of  whiclvwere  nearly 
synonymous  with  the  Hindoo. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  how  did  they  come  into  Europe? 

MRS.  F. 

Grellman  supposes  that,  in  the  war  of  devastation  carried 
on  in  the  years  1408  and  1409  by  Timur  Beg 

HENRIETTA. 

I  beg  pardon  for  interrupting  you,  but  is  he  the  same  as 
Tamerlane? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  he  is.  His  wars  are  supposed  to  have  driven  the 
gipsies  through  the  Persian  district,  along  the  Persian  Gulf, 
through  Arabia  Petraea,  across  the  Isthmus  of  Suez  into 
Egypt.  Mary,  I  am  particular  in  giving  you  their  exact 
route,  that  you  may  trace  it  on  the  map. 

MARY. 
Thank  you,  mamma. 

MRS.  F. 

Entering  Europe,  as  they  did,  by  Egypt,  they  acquired  the 
name  of  Egyptians,  corrupted  into  Gipsies  in  English,  Gitano 
in  Spanish,  Zigeuner  in  German,  Cingani  in  the  Hugarian, 
and  Zingari  in  the  Italian  languages.  In  Germany  they 
were  first  observed  in  1414.  Muratori  quotes  a  writer  who 
says,  that  in  1422,  two  hundred  Cingari  appeared  in  the  town 
where  he  lived,  and  stated  that  they  came  from  India;  and 
Munster,  in  1524,  gathered  from  a  gipsy,  accounts  which 


238  THEIR  MANNER  OF  LIFE. 

proved  his  impression  of  their  having  come  originally  from 
India. 

ESTHER. 

But  do  not  some  people  suppose  them  to  be  really  Egyp- 
tians] 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  and  those  who  advocate  their  Egyptian  origin,  assert, 
that  when  Selim  conquered  Egypt  in  1517,  several  of  the 
nations  refused  to  submit  to  the  Turkish  yoke,  and  revolted, 
under  one  Zinganeus,  whence  the  Turks  called  them  Zinganees, 
but  that  being  at  length  surrounded  and  banished,  they  dis- 
persed all  over  the  world. 


MARY. 
Were  they  always  fortune-tellers? 


Yes,  from  the  very  first  they  derived  their  subsistence  from 
practising  the  black  art,  palmistry,  begging,  and  stealing. 
Nevertheless,  whatever  may  have  been  their  origin,  it  is  cer- 
tain that  they  appeared  in  great  numbers,  and,  as  it  were, 
simultaneously,  in  almost  every  country  in  Europe,  in  the 
fifteenth  century.  In  1560  they  were  expelled  from  France; 
in  1591,  from  Spain;  and  from  England  at  an  early  period; 
for  in  1500,  there  is  a  statute  of  Henry  VII  against  them. 
The  manner  in  which  they  have  spread  is  incredible;  Europe 
cannot  contain  less  than  700,000. 


But  where  do  they  chiefly  reside1? 

MRS.  F. 

The  southeastern  countries,  Hungary  and  Transylvania, 
are  their  principal  abodes,  where,  in  summer,  they  reside  in 
tents;  in  winter,  in  holes  ten  or  twelve  feet  deep  in  the  earth. 
They  possess  a  sort  of  regular  government,  and  are  ruled  by 
a  leader  or  chief.  In  Turkey,  also,  they  are  every  where  to 


MAJOR  KEPPEL'S  ACCOUNT  OF  THEM.  239 

be  found.  Mary,  give  me  Major  Keppel's  Travels  across 
the  Balkan,  and  I  will  read  the  passage  in  which  he  describes 
them:  "  On  the  left  hand  side  of  the  road,  we  saw  twenty 
black  tents  pitched  in  a  straight  line,  with  two  flags,  one 
white  and  the  other  red,  fixed  at  the  right  flank.  These 
formed  an  encampment  of  gipsies,  which  had  stationed  itself 
there  to  welcome,  with  a  band  of  music,  a  bride  who  was  to 
pass  in  that  direction  on  her  way  to  her  future  husband.  *  * 
*  The  tents  of  the  wanderers  closely  resemble  those  of  the 
Illyants,  which  I  had  seen  in  the  Arabian  desert.  Gipsies 
are  to  be  seen  in  every  part  of  Turkey;  I  constantly  fell  in 
with  them  in  the  course  of  my  journey.  The  largest  encamp- 
ment that  I  ever  saw  was  at  Shumla,  where  they  were  as- 
sembled to  the  number  of  some  thousands.  The  appearance 
of  their  women  is  always  most  striking  in  a  Mahometan 
country,  where  such  rigid  notions  are  entertained  of  female 
decorum.  Nothing  can  be  more  strongly  contrasted  than  the 
uncovered  face,  the  upright  carriage,  the  fearless  and  almost 
fierce  demeanor  of  a  well-formed  gipsy  girl,  with  the  veiled 
features,  shuffling  walk,  and  timid,  downcast  look  of  a  round 
looking  female  of  the  Turkish  race.  The  gipsies  conform  to 
the  prevailing  religion  of  the  country  in  which  they  may 
chance  to  be.  Thus,  they  are  Christians  in  Wallachia  and 
Moldavia,  and,  generally  speaking,  Mussulmans  to  the  south- 
ward of  the  Balkan.  Their  creed,  however,  sits  loosely  upon 
them;  as  they  follow  it  no  farther  than  it  accords  with  the 
habits  of  their  tribe;  consequently,  those  who  profess  the 
Mahometan  faith  are  not  acknowledged  by  the  more  rigid 
Osmanli,  who  hates  them  as  infidels,  and  dreads  them  as 
magicians."* 

Thus-you  see,  that  the  gipsies  are  every  where  the  same 
'vagabond  race,  every  where  alike  incapable  of  receiving  edu- 
cation. Religion  they  have  none,  but  adopt,  as  Major  Keppel 
states,  the  creed  of  the  country  in  which  they  dwell.  Music 
is  the  only  science  which  they  know;  and,  unchanged  by 
climate,  either  in  habits,  complexion,  or  physiognomy,  these 

*  Vol.  ii. 


240  ROGERS'S  DESCRIPTION  OF  THEM.. 

singular  people  have  now,  for  four  centuries,  overspread  the 
face  of  Europe,  without  any  distinct  account  having  been 
gained  of  their  origin.  A  cloud  has,  and  probably  always 
will,  hang  over  the  descent  and  first  appearance  of  this  most 
mysterious  race.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt;  I  shall  now  take  greater  interest  in  gip- 
sies than  I  have  ever  before  felt;  but  how  strange  that  people 
should  be  so  superstitious  about  fortune-telling. 


The  weak  are  always  superstitious,  the  greater  the  igno- 
rance the  greater  the  credulity;  but  in  England,  where  there 
are,  I  believe,  fewer  gipsies  than  in  any  country  of  Europe, 
the  increase  of  knowledge  among  all  classes  has  rendered 
their  pretended  arts  of  little  avail;  and  were  they  not  to  pursue 
some  other  trade,  their  skill  in  palmistry  would  not  suffice  to 
procure  them  a  subsistence.  The  sanguinary  laws  which 
formerly  existed  against  them  in  England  have  been  repealed. 
Who  recollects  the  faithful  and  elegant  description  of  them 
which  is  given  by  Rogers  in  his  "  Pleasures  of  Memory."f 

ESTHER. 

I  do  not  think  that  any  of  us  do.  Shall  I  get  the  book  and 
read  it? 

MRS.  F. 

If  you  please. 

"  Down  by  yon  hazel  copse,  at  evening,  blazed 
The  gipsy's  faggot  — there  we  stood  and  gazed; 
Gazed  on  her  sun-burnt  face  with  silent  awe, 
Her  tatter'd  mantle,  and  her  hood  of  straw; 
Her  moving  lips,  her  caldron  brimming  o'er; 
The  drowsy  brood  that  on  her  back  she  bore, 
Imps,  in  the  barn  with  mousing  owlets  bred, 
From  rifled  roost  at  nightly  revel  fed; 
Whose  dark  eyesflash'd  thro'  locks  of  blackest  shade, 

*  Bright's  Travels  in  Hungary.        t  1st  part. 


SORTES  VIRGILIANjE,  ETC.  241 

When  in  the  breeze  the  distant  watch-dog  hay'd: 

And  heroes  fled  the  Sibyl's  mutter'd  call, 

Whose  elfin  prowess  scaled  the  orchard-wall. 

As  o'er  my  palm  the  silver  piece  she  drew, 

And  traced  the  line  of  life  with  searching  view, 

How  throbb'd  my  fluttering  pulse  with  hopes  and  fears, 

To  learn  the  color  of  my  future  years!" 

MRS.  F. 

Thank  you,  Esther.. 

FREDERICK. 

Aunt,  relative  to  superstition,  how  much  the  Romans  were 
influenced  by  it  in  their  Sortes  Virgilianae*  and  Homericae, 
which  were  but  a  kind  of  fortune-telling;. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  superstition,  as  one  of  the  old  writers  says,  is  the 
greatest  burthen  of  the  world,  and  the  Romans  were  not  ex- 
empt from  the  common  weakness.  The  Sortes  Virgilianae 
and  Homericse  were  succeeded  by  the  Sortes  Sanctorum,  or 
divinations  by  the  Bible;  and  this  had  become  so  common'in 
the  fifth  century  that  it  was  expressly  forbidden  by  several 
councils,!  though  they  were  never  able  to  suppress  it  entirely; 
for  in  the  beginning  of  the  eighth  century,  when,  indeed,  ig- 
norance had  attained  its  greatest  pitch,:}:  we  find  it  preserved, 
among  other  superstitious  practices,  such  as  divination  from 
the  flight  of  birds,  magic,  &c. 

ESTHER. 

But  this  species  of  divination  is  retained  by  the  nations  of 
the  East  to  the  present  day;  and  Nadir  Shah  twice  decided 
upon  besieging  cities,  by  opening  the  poems  of  Hafiz. 

*  Charles  I  and  Lord  Falkland  tried  the  Sortes  Virgilianse  when 
in  the  Bodleian  Library:  Charles  opened  the  .ZEneis  at  b.  iv.  1.  613., 
and  Lord  Falkland  at  b.  xi.  1.  152. 

f  At  that  of  Vannes,  A.  D.  465;  Agde,  506;  and  Auxerre,  578;  and 
they  are  again  forbidden  in  793,  by  an  edict  of  Charlemagne. 

$  Schmidt. 
21 


242  ROMAN  NUMBER  SIX. 

FREDERICK. 

Then  there  was  the  Roman  superstition  respecting  the 
number  six. 

MRS.  F. 

Oh!  you  allude  to  the  saying,  "  Semper  sub  sextus  perdita 
Roma  fuit,"  or,  "  Under  six  Rome  was  always  lost." 

HENRIETTA. 

Whence  did  this  idea  originate1? 

MRS.  F. 

From  a  singular  coincidence  of  circumstances.  Tarquin- 
ius  Sextus  was  the  worst  of  his  race,  and  his  conduct,  as  you 
all  know,  led  to  a  revolution.  Under  Urban  the  Sixth  the 
grand  Schism  of  the  West  broke  out.  Alexander  the  Sixth 
outvied  all  his  predecessors  in  wickedness,  and  it  was  in  his 
reign  that  the  line  above  quoted  was  written.  To  this  we 
may  add  another  example  of  the  fatal  coincidence  in  Pius  the 
Sixth,  who  was  led  captive  by  the  French,  and  treated  with 
ignominy  and  oppression. 

HENRIETTA. 

Did  not  Pius  VI  live  at  Fontainbleau  during  his  captivity 
in  France? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  I  have  seen  the  room  he  occupied;  this,  and  the  pen 
with  which  Napoleon  is  said  to  have  signed  his  abdication, 
are  the  two  great  objects  of  curiosity  shown  to  the  traveller 
who  visits  the  royal  palace. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  heard  Mr.  Campbell  make  an  observation  the  other  day, 
when  he  was  playing  cards,  which  I  did  not  understand.  He 
called  the  nine  of  diamonds  "  the  curse  of  Scotland." 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  a  Scottish  saying,  which  originated  in  the  circum- 
stance of  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  having  written,  on  the  eve 


YEAR  88.  243 

of  the  battle  of  Qulloden,  the  order  for  no  quarter  to  be  given 
upon  the  back  of  a  nine  of  diamonds,  there  not  happening  to 
be  a  piece  of  paper  at  hand.  The  story  is  related  in  different 
ways,  but  it  is  too  unimportant  to  merit  attention. 

ESTHER. 

Then  there  is  the  year  88,  which  is  remarkable  as  having 
been  fatal  to  the  Stuart  family. 

HENRIETTA. 

How,  Esther] 

•    f  '  '   »  • 

ESTHER. 

In  1488,  James  III  lost  a  battle  against  his  subjects,  by 
whom  he  was  pursued  and  assassinated. 

In  1588,  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  was  beheaded. 

In  1688,  James  II  abdicated  the  British  crown;  and 

In  1788,  died  Prince  Charles  James  Stuart,  the  last  of  the 
race  who  made  any  attempt  to  recover  the  English  crown. 

FREDERICK. 

Are  there  any  of  the  house  of  Stuart  still  alive? 

MRS.  F. 

None.  Cardinal  York,  who  styled  himself  Henry  the 
Ninth,  and  who  was  brother  to  Prince  Charles,  died  at  Rome 
in  1808,  aged  82. 

HENRIETTA. 

Who  was  the  Countess  of  Albany,  of  whom  I  have  heard 
speak1?  , 

MRS.  v. 

She  was  the  widow  of  the  young  Pretender,  who  was 
called  in  his  childhood  by  that  title,  which  he  afterwards  re- 
sumed on  his  retirement  into  Tuscany.  The  Countess  of 
Albany  always  bore  the  arms  of  England  upon  her  carriage, 
and  assumed  the  royal  liveries.  She  died  in  1824,  at  Rome, 
where  she  had  resided  the  greater  part  of  her  life.  In  St. 
Peter's  repose  the  mortal  remains  of  the  last  of  this  unfortu- 


244  LAST  OF  THE  STUARTS.  * 

nate  race;  George  IV  had  a  monument  erected  there  to  their 
memory,  which,  though  the  work  of  Canova,  is  hardly 
worthy  of  so  great  an  artist. 

ESTHER. 

The  Stuart  family  must  ever  claim  our  strongest  interest, 
for,  I  believe,  there  exists  not,  in  the  record  of  history,  a  par- 
allel instance  of  such  an  unvaried  series  of  misfortune  in  one 
family. 

MRS.  F. 

Justly  observed,  Esther;  the  greatness  acquired  by  their 
ancestor*  when  he  married  the  heiress  of  Scotland,  was 
indeed  a  fatal  gift  to  his  race,  who  became,  for  three  centuries, 
the  sport  of  fortune.  Of  those  wrho  ascended  the  throne,  all 
passed  a  stormy  life  —  many  met  with  a  violent  death. 

Robert  III,  second  king  of  the  Stuart  family,  died  of  grief. 

James  I  was  assassinated. 

James  II  was  killed  at  the  siege  of  Roxburgh. 

James  III  died  in  battle  against  his  subjects. 

James  IV  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Flodden  Field. 

James  V  died  of  grief. 

Mary  Stuart  perished  on  the  scaffold,  but  her  son  James  I 
passed  his  life  in  comparative  tranquillity. 

Charles  I  was  beheaded. 

Charles  II  was  for  years,  an  exile. 

James  II  was  compelled  to  abdicate,  and  his  decendants  were 
excluded  for  ever,  from  a  throne  which  had  been  the  source 
of  an  uninterrupted  series  of  calamities  to  their  house. 

ESTHER. 

And  then  there  is  the  unfortunate  Arabella  Stuart,  first 
cousin  to  James  I,  whose  history  from  her  birth  to  her  death 
seems  to  be  composed  of  projects  of  marriage.  The  factious 

*  Walter,  the  fourth  of  that  name,  married  Mary,  daughter  of 
Robert,  King  of  Scotland,  and  had  a  son,  who  became  king  in  1370, 
under  the  name  of  Robert  II. 


QUEEN  ELIZABETH.  245 

I 

intrigued  to  give  her  a  husband,  kings  and  queens  watched 
over  her  with  jealous  vigilance  to  prevent  her  from  having 
one,  and  she  was  treated  as  a  state  criminal  because  she 
had  taken  one  of  her  own  selection.  Both  Elizabeth 
and  James  treated  her  with  great  severity,  and  her  unjust  im- 
prisonment by  the  latter,  undermined  her  reason  and  termina- 
ted her  life.* 

HENRIETTA. 

I  shall  always  dislike  Elizabeth  for  her  cruelty  to  Queen 
Mary. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is,  indeed,  a  great  blot  in  her  character.  The  relative 
conduct  of  the  rival  queens  has  give  given  rise  to  much  con- 
troversy among  historians,  some  advocating  the  part  of  Mary 
others  that  of  Elizabeth.  The  character  of  Elizabeth,  as  a 
woman,  is  much  open  to  censure;  her  love  of  admiration,  her 
ungovernable  temper,  her  vanity,  her  favoritism,  all  over- 
shadow a  character  which,  when  the  circumstances  of  the 
times  are  taken  into  consideration,  must  be  deemed,  in  many 
respects,  worthy  of  admiration  as  a  sovereign. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  how  very  vain  she  was.  I  have  read  that  on  an  indif- 
ferent engraving  being  published  of  her,  she  desired  that  all 
the  impressions  might  be  destroyed,  that  her  subjects  might 
not  have  such  an  unworthy  portrait  of  their  sovereign. 

ESTHER. 

And  then  with  respect  to  dress,  she  always  wore  false  hair 
of  a  red  color,  and  appeared  in  a  different  dress  every  day  of 

*  The  relationship  was  thus  :  — 

Henry  Darnley,  Charles  Stuart,  Earl  of  Lennox, 

married  Mary  Queen  of  married  Elizabeth 

Scotland.  Cavendish. 

I  I 

James  1.  Arabella  Stuart. 

21* 


246  ANECDOTES  OF  HER  COURT.  . 

the  year.  She  possessed  the  costumes  peculiar  to  every  coun- 
try in  the  world,  and  when  she  died,  nearly  three  thousand 
dresses  were  found  in  her  wardrobe. 


In  private,  Elizabeth  was  plain  and  moderate  in  her  dress, 
but  she  loved  to  make  a  display  of  magnificence  and  splendor, 
when  she  appeared  in  public.  She  then  would  wear  high 
shoes,  in  order  to  make  herself  appear  taller  than  she  really 
was;  and  with  the  magnificent  ruff  which  bears  her  name,  the 
royal  crown  on  her  head,  the  golden  ball  in  her  left  hand,  the 
sceptre  in  her  right,  her  whole  dress  one  latticework  of  pearls, 
glittering  in  jewels,  and  surrounded  by  her  no  less  splendid 
court,  she  might  well  dazzle  people  with  her  regal  magnifi- 
cence, when  she  appeared,  thus  attired,  on  the  first  day  of 
Parliament. 

ESTHER. 

But  what  flattery  she  exacted  from  every  one  who  ap- 
proached her,  and  what  absurd  answers  they  were  obliged  to 
give,  in  order  to  satisfy  her  thirst  for  adulation.  The  Scotch 
ambassador  was  required  by  her  to  say  which  bore  the  palm 
of  beauty,  Elizabeth  or  Mary;  and  he  could  only  release  him- 
self from  his  awkward  predicament  by  assuring  her  "  that 
Mary  was  the  handsomest  woman  in  Scotland,  as  Elizabeth 
was  in  England." 

MRS.   F. 

The  Spanish  ambassador,  when  asked  by  Elizabeth  what 
he  thought  of  the  ladies  of  her  court,  gave  an  answer  well 
adapted  to  please  the  inquirer. 

FREDERICK. 

What  was  that,  aunt! 

MRS.  F. 

"That  it  was  hard  to  judge  of  the  stars  in  the  presence  of 
the  sun:"  and  then  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  too,  on  the  occasion 
of  asking  the  Queen  to  confer  some  new  favor  upon  him, 


LEARNED  LADIES.  247 

when  the  Queen  replied,  "  When,  Sir  Walter,  will  you  cease 
to  be  a  beggar?"  the  subtle  courtier  answered,  "  When  your 
majesty  ceases  to  be  a  benefactor." 


A  most  specious  reply. 

HENRIETTA. 

With  all  her  childish  vanity,  Elizabeth  was  a  very  learned 


MRS.   F. 

Yes;  her  tutor  Ascham  places  her  at  the  head  of  the  lettered 
ladies  of  England  of  her  time.  Her  proficiency  in  Latin  and 
Greek  is  well  known;  and  it  is  not  many  years  since  her 
translation  of  Boethius  was  discovered  in  the  State  Paper 
Office.  Her  unfortunate  rival,  Mary  of  Scotland,  also  ranks 
among  the  learned  ladies  of  the  age.  When  at  Paris,  she 
delivered  a  Latin  oration  in  the  hall  of  the  Louvre,  with  so 
much  grace  and  eloquence  as  to  fill  her  hearers  with  admi- 
ration; and  Elizabeth,  as  you  probably  know,  gave  answers 
in  Latin  and  Greek  to  the  addresses  of  the  two  Universities. 
You  should  read  Roger  Ascham's  letter,  in  which  he  gives 
an  account  of  the  proficiency  of  his  pupils,  Elizabeth,  Lady 
Jane  Grey,  Edward  VI,  and  Mary.  At  that  time  the  ladies 
of  the  court  studied  Latin,  Greek,  Spanish,  French,  &c. 
Indeed,  under  the  example  of  Sir  Thomas  More,  this  more 
learned  education  of  females  had  become  general.  His  only 
daughter,  Margaret  Roper,  shone  among  the  ladies  of  the  age; 
and^when  we  also  recollect  the  classical  education  of  Lady 
Jane  Grey,  of  the  four  daughters  of  Sir  Anthony  Cook  (the 
tutor  of  Edward  VI),  Elizabeth,  Mary,  &c.,  wre  cannot 
wonder  at  the  dislike  that  Henry  VIII  took  to  Anne  of 
Cleves,  whose  accomplishments  are  thus  summed  up  by  a 
contemporary  writer:  "  She  could  read  and  write  her  own 
language,  and  sew  very  well;  as  for  music,  it  was  not  the 
manner  of  her  country  to  learn  it;"  add  to  this  her  unprepos- 
sessing appearance,  it  is  not  surprising  fhat  Henry  should 
have  so  much  disliked  her. 


248  HYPATIA. 

ESTHER. 

But,  at  any  rate,  she  could  work,  and  that  was  considered, 
in  those  days,  a  most  necessary  branch  of  female  education. 

MRS.  F. 

The  Anglo-Saxon  women  were  famous  for  their  needle- 
work, and  the  English  work  was  celebrated  abroad  for  its 
excellence.  The  Anglo-Saxon  lady  would  portray  in  em- 
broidery the  achievements  of  her  husband,  and,  surrounded 
by  her  maids,  would  astonish  even  a  modern  female  in  the 
various  kinds  which  she  could'  execute.  A  lady  of  rank 
would  often  work  a  whole  set  of  hangings,  &c.;  and,  indeed, 
by  an  old  custom,  women  were  prohibited  from  marrying 
until  they  had  spun  a  regular  set  of  bed-furniture;  and,  till 
their  marriage,  they  were  termed  spinsters,  an  appellation 
which  is  preserved  to  this  day,  in  the  publication  of  the  banns, 
and  in  the  courts  of  law. 

ESTHER. 

I  was  Beading  the  other  day  an  account  of  the  barbarous 
murder  o"  the  celebrated  Hypatia,  the  most  learned  lady  of 
her  age. 

FREDERICK. 

Who  wras  she? 

ESTHER. 

She  was  the  daughter  of  a  mathematician  of  Alexandria, 
and  filled  the  office  of  professor  of  the  Platonic  philosophy  in 
that  city,  Her  eloquence  was  most  persuasive,  and  she 
counted  among  her  disciples  many  of  the  most  learned  men 
of  the  age;  but,  though  the  friend  of  the  Bishop  of  Ptolemais, 
no  persuasions  could  induce  her  to  become  a  Christian. 
Attired  in  the  mantle  of  a  philosopher,  modest  and  humble  in 
her  deportment,  she  soon  became  an  object  of  jealousy  to  the 
envious  and  the  base,  and  being  unjustly  looked  upon  as  a 
bar  to  a  reconciliation  between  St.  Cyril,  Patriarch  of  Alex- 
andria, and  the  governor  of  the  city,  who  protected  her  from 


V1TTORIA  COLONNA.  249 

the  fiery  zeal  of  the  former,  she  was  attacked  by  some  of  the 
most  violent  partisans  of  St.  Cyril,  dragged  from  the  school 
in  which  she  was  teaching,  and  most  barbarously  murdered 
in  A.  D.  415.  Her  works  perished  in  the  conflagration  of  the 
Alexandrian  library. 

MRS.  F. 

But  it  is  to  Italy  that  we  must  look  for  the  ladies  most 
learned  in  science  and  philosophy  —  ladies  who  have  received 
doctor's  degrees,  and  have  filled  professorships  in  Greek, 
philosophy,  and  the  abtruse  sciences;  and  yet  the  general 
state  of  female  education  in  Italy  must  be  placed  at  a  low 
standard,  notwithstanding  these  and  many  other  bright 
exceptions. 

HENRIETTA. 

Aunt,  we  should  all  like  very  much  to  hear  about  these 
learned  ladies. 

ESTHER. 

Was  not  Vittoria  Colonna  one  of  the  most  celebrated 
women  of  her  age'? 

MRS.  P. 

Yes;  but  she  is  no  less  remarkable  for  her  feminine  virtues 
and  her  conjugal  affection.  Wife  of  the  Marquis  of  Pescara, 
who  commanded  the  imperial  troops  at  the  battle  of  Pavia,  it 
was  from  her  advice  and  exhortations  that  the  marquis  had 
firmness  to  resist  the  insidious  offers  of  the  opposite  party; 
and  distinguised  alike  for  her  p6etry,  her  elegant  acquire- 
ments, and  her  erudition,  Vittoria  has  equal  claim  to  our 
admiration  for  her  piety,  her  industry,  and  all  the  softer 
graces  which  adorn  the  female  character.  Her  poetry  is  the 
best  imitation  of  the  style  of  Petrarch,  and  her  talents  and 
genius  were,  in  short,  of  the  highest  order. 


Then,  there  is  the  Venetian  lady,  Helen  Cornaro-Piscopia, 
who  was  made  in  1678  doctor  of  philosophy  in  the  University 
of  Padua.  She  understood  French,  Spanish,  Latin,  Greek, 


250  NOVELLA  D'  ANDRE  A. 

Hebrew,  and  Arabic,  sang  the  verses  which  she  herself  com- 
posed, and  discussed  with  eloquence  on  mathematics,  music, 
astronomy,  theology,  and  the  most  abtruse  points  of  philoso- 
phy- 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  she  died  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-eight,  and  under 
the  vestibule  of  the  University  of  Padua  I  have  seen  the 
marble  statue  which  is  erected  to  her  honor,  and  in  which  she 
is  represented  in  the  habit  of  St.  Benedict,  of  which  austere 
order  she  followed  the  rules,  although  she  always  lived  in 
the  house  of  her  father.  But  it  is  Bologna  which  bears  on  its 
list  more  female  doctors  than  ever  appeared  at  any  university 
—  Novella  d' Andrea,  Tambroni,  Bassi,  and  Agnesi,  all  of 
whom  filled  the  chairs  of  different  professors. 

FREDERICK. 

Pray  tell  us  more  about  them,  aunt. 
MRS.  F. 

The  beautiful  Novella  d'Andrea  belongs  to  an  earlier  age 
than  the  others;  she  was  the  eldest  daughter  of  the  most  cele- 
brated professor  of  canon  law  in  the  fourteenth  century.  The 
degree  of  doctor  was  conferred  upon  her  by  the  Academy  of 
Bologna,  and  she  frequently  filled  her  father's  chair;  but  lest 
her  beauty  should  disturb  the  attention  of  her  auditors,  she 
had  a  little  curtain  placed  before  her,  whenever  she  taught  in 
the  schools. 


Next  comes  Clotilda  Tambroni,  who  filled  the  chair  of  the 
Greek  language  at  Bologna. 

MRS.  F. 

And  then  the  no  less  celebrated  Laura  Bassi,  a  native  of 
that  city,  and  daughter  of  a  doctor  of  laws.  She  early 
evinced  a  passion  for  study,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty-one, 
publicly  sustained  a  thesis  in  philosophy,  and  answered  her 
opponents  in  the  most  elegant  Latin.  She  soon  after  received 
the  doctor's  degree;  and  the  same  year  the  chair  of  philosophy. 


MARIA  AGNESI.  251 

with  the  most  honorable  appointments,  was  bestowed  upon 
her.  She  equally  excelled  in  algebra,  geometry,  physics, 
Greek,  poetry  and  the  belles  lettres,  and  is  described  by  a 
contemporary  as  singularly  gentle  and  modest  in  her  deport- 
ment, serious  and  unaffected,  of  a  vigorous  memory,  accom- 
panied by  solid  judgment  and  a  lively  immagination.  She  died 
in  1778.  The  last  learned  Italian  to  whom  I  shall  now  allude 
is  the  celebrated  Milanese  lady,  Maria  Agnesi,  who  died  in 
the  last  year  of  the  last  century.  She  understood  Latin  at 
nine  years  old,  and  soon  acquired  Greek,  Hebrew,  French, 
German  and  Spanish.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  she  supported 
a  hundred  and  ninety-one  theses,  and  continued  so  to  distin- 
guish herself  that,  on  her  father  being  ill,  she  obtained 
permission  of  Benedict  XIV,  to  supply  his  chair  of  mathe- 
matics at  Bologna.  She  subsequently  retired  from  the  world 
and  devoted  the  remainder  of  her  life  to  charity  and  benevo- 
lence. 


Thank  you,  mamma. 

MRS.  F. 

I  have  now  finished  my  catalogue  of  the  ladies  of  Italy, 
although  there  are,  perhaps,  many  others  that  might  be 
enumerated.  But  in  the  nineteenth  century,  our  own  country 
stands  pre-eminent  in  the  annals  of  female  science;  and  were 
it  not  in  opposition  to  the  retiring  feelings  of  one  who  is 
humble  as  she  is  learned,  a  doctor's  degree  or  a  professor's 
chair  might  now  be  bestowed  with  equal  justice  upon  an 
English  lady  as  it  was  conferred  upon  those  of  Italy;  but 
though  eligible  for  the  highest  honors  that  science  can  offer, 
she  is  more  content  to  shine  in  the  path  of  domestic  life, 
affording  to  us  all  a  striking  evidence  that  talents  and  pursuits 
of  the  highest  order  are  not  incompatible  with  a  strict  dis- 
charge of  the  relative  and  social  duties.* 

*  Her  "Connection  of  the  Physical  Science's"  will,  of  course,  be 
in  the  library  of  the  youthful  reader. 


252  SCIENCE  UNITED  WITH  RELIGION. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then,  aunt,  you  do  not  object  to  learning  in  women? 

MRS.  F. 

Where  a  woman  is  gifted  with  talents  and  capacity  to 
aspire  to  the  higher  walks  of  learning,  I  see  no  objection  to 
her  following  them:  but  recollect  that  it  is  with  the  Bible  in 
our  hands  that  we  must  enter  the  gates  of  science,  and  when 
accompanied  by  religious  principles,  and  pursued  with  re- 
ligious views,  there  is  no  fear  of  it  becoming  the  knowledge 
"  that  puffeth  up;"  but  rather,  under  higher  guidance,  it  may 
lead  from  worldly  wisdom  to  that  which  will  alone  make  us 
"  wise  unto  salvation." 


253 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  MORNING  WALK. 

POLITENESS.  — SILK- WEED.  —  PEAT  MOSS. —  SUN  DEW.  —  MOSSES. — 

TAR,    PITCH,  ETC.  —  STONE    PINE. RAVENNA. —  WOOD    OF   THE 

VINE.  —  DUCK'S  NEST  IN  A  TREE.  —  ROBIN?S  CUSHION.  —  GALL 
NUT.  —  MISTLETOE  OF  THE  DRUIDS.  —  CHARCOAL  BURNING.  — 
DERIVATION  OF  SEVERAL  SAXON  WORDS.  —  ON  THE  STUDY  OF 
THE  SAXON  LANGUAGE.  FERNS,  EATABLE.  — CAPILLAIRE  PLANT. 

—  FERN    SEED. —  FUNGI,   EATABLE.  —  DRY   ROT. —  GLOW-WORM. 

—  CLEANING   INSTRUMENT.  —  CLAWS  OF  EiRDS.  —  PROCRASTINA- 
TION. 


Needs  no  show  of  mountain  hoary, 
Winding  shore  or  deepening  glen, 
Where  the  landscape  in  its  glory 
Teaches  truth  to  wandering  men. 
Give  true  hearts  but  earth  and  sky, 
And  some  flowers  to  bloom  and  die, — 
Homely  scenes  and  simple  views, 
Lowly  thoughts  may  best  infuse.  — KEBLE. 


ESTHER. 

COME,  Henrietta,  we  are  all  waiting  for  you. 

HENRIETTA. 

Can  any  one  tell  me  where  my  bonnet  is1?     Frederick,  do 
you  know? 

MARF. 

How  should  he  be  able  to  tell? 

^?<*    d  FREDERICK. 

Henrietta  asked  me  to  take  it  up-stairs  for  her,  and  I  said 
that  I  would  presently;  but  I  quite  forgot  it,  and  it  must  still 
be  in  the  hall. 
22 


254  POLITENESS. 

MRS.   F. 

The  evil  consequences  of  untidiness  on  the  one  side,  and 
of  procrastination  on  the  other.  You,  Henrietta,  should  not 
have  left  your  bonnet  about;  and  you,  Frederick,  having 
promised  to  put  it  away,  should  have  done  so  immediately. 
Few  habits  are  productive  of  greater  inconvenience  than  that 
of  putting  off  what  we  have  to  do.  In  the  first  place,  it 
often,  when  deferred,  entirely  escapes  our  memory;  and  even 
should  it  not,  I  think  that  the  act  ceases  to  be  one  of  real 
kindness,  if  we  consult  our  own  convenience  in  the  time  of 
performing  it. 

FREDERICK. 

I  do  not  quite  understand  that,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

Politeness  has  been  justly  designated  to  be  "  refined  good 
nature."  It  does  not  consist  in  mere  acts  of  form  and  cere- 
mony, but  in  a  total  absence  of  all  selfish  feeling,  and  a  con- 
sequent desire  to  please  and  oblige  others,  whatever  the  per- 
sonal sacrifice  may  be.  I  therefore  consider  selfishness  and 
real  politeness  to  be  incompatible,  for  my  idea  of  politeness 
takes  a  wider  range  than  that  which  is  usually  conveyed  by 
the  ordinary  acceptation  of  the  word:  but  here  is  Mary,  with 
Henrietta's  bonnet;  so  we  are  now  ready.  I  propose  taking 
a  walk  to  the  farm,  and  we  will  go  through  the  wood,  as  it 
will  be  less  dusty  than  by  the  road. 

HENRIETTA. 

Pray  stop,  aunt,  and  look  at  the  pretty  brooms  which  this 
little  girl  has  brought  to  sell;  she  calls  them  silk  weed. 

MRS.  F. 

They  are  made  of  Polytrichum  commune,  which  grows 
abundantly  on  the  heaths  about  here.  It  is  the  largest  species 
of  moss  known,  excepting  an  exotic  kind  (Timmia  longiseta). 
In  this  country,  the  silk-weed  seldom  exceeds  a  span  in  length, 
but  in  Alsace,  we  are  told  that  it  will  sometimes  attain  the 


PfiAT-MOSS.  255 

height  of  half  a  yard.*  Take  some  of  the  little  girl's  brooms, 
Esther;  and  we  will  examine  the  moss,  more  at  our  leisure, 
when  we  return. 

ESTHER. 
But  the  common  peat  moss  (Sphagnum)  is  also  very  long. 


Under  peculiar  circumstances,  it  will  attain  a  great  extent, 
it  having  been  found  by  Dr.  Greville,  in  a  pool  of  water,  a 
foot  and  a  half  long.f  The  sphagnum  is  one  of  the  most 
abundantly  diffused  of  all  the  mosses,  and  its  whitish  hue 
(tinged  however  with  red,  when  the  water  has  dried  up  and  left 
it  exposed  to  the  action  of  the  air  and  sun),  makes  its  appear- 
ance very  remarkable  and  distinct  from  all  other  genera.  All  the 
species  are  aquatics,  and  the  sphagnum  palustre,  from  its  rapid 
growth,  and  from  its  property  of  throwing  up  new  shoots  in 
its  upper  part  while  the  lower  parts  are  decaying,  is  supposed 
to  constitute  a  considerable  portion  of  the  great  bogs  of  the 
North  of  Europe.  In  Alpine  countries,  most  of  the  springs 
take  their  origin  in  large  marshy  plains,  covered  with  sphag- 
num. Its  softness,  its  cotton-like  texture,  its  facility  of  ab- 
sorbing moisture,  and  the  ease  with  which  it  is  procured, 
render  it  fit  to  be  applied  to  many  purposes.  The  Lapland 
women  make  great  use  of  it,  and  it  would  form  a  soft  and 
delicate  mattress  or  lining  for  the  cradle  of  a  child. ^ 


I  think  it  has  been  always  upon  this  moss,  that  we  have 
found  the  curious  little  sun-dew,  (Drosera). 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  and  that  still  more  singular  plant  of  the  same  family, 
Venus'  fly-trap  (Dionaea  muscipula),  with  whose  irritability 
you  must  be  all  familiar,  grows  among  the  sphagnum;  so  does 
also  the  purple  Sarracenia,  and  many  other  plants  which  are 
difficult  of  cultivation  in  our  gardens. 

*  SpreMgel.       t  Hooker's  Muscologia  Britannica.        ^  Lamouroux 


256 


MOSSES 


Diousea  Muscipulu. 

ESTHER. 

I  read,  the  other  day,  that  the  sun  dew  has  the  same  appel- 
lation in  French,  rosee  du  soleil;  and  also  in  Latin,  ros  solis; 
the  plant  deriving  this  designation  from  the  glandulous  hairs 
which  glitter  upon  its  surface,  and  give  the  appearance  of 
being  covered  with  dew. 


I  am  glad,  Esther,  that  you  take  interest  in  the  study  of 
the  mosses;  for  though  among  the  smallest  of  vegetables,  yet 
their  structure  is  so  curious  and  so  complicated,  as  to  form  a 
fertile  subject  of  interesting  investigation.  The  variety  of 
soil  and  climate  in  the  different  parts  of  the  British  islands 
gives  us  a  larger  number  of  species  than,  perhaps,  is  to  be 
seen  upon  a  like  extent  of  country,  in  any  part  of  Europe. 
The  latest  works  enumerate  about  290  British  species.  They 
chiefly  delight  in  damp  and  shady  situations;  but  they  are  by 
no  means  exclusively  confined  to  these  places  of  growth.  — 
Moss  is  found  upon  the  stem  of  the  cocoa  nut,  and  others 
have  been  even  gathered  on  the  burning  sands  of  the  deserts, 
in  the  interior  of  Africa.  In  the  Alps  and  Pyrenees,  they  are 
found  at  an  elevation  of  7000  to  8000  feet;  on  the  northern 
border  of  Siberia,  the  entire  soil  is  covered  for  a  great  extent 
with  mosses;  and  the  rocks  of  Spitzbergen  and  Greenland,  and 


TURPENTINE.  257 

the  coasts  of  the  Icy  Sea,  are  covered  with  them.  Thus,  from 
the  Equinox  to  the  Poles,  there  is  scarcely  any  part  of  the 
world  destitute  of  mosses;  and  the  universality  of  this  tribe, 
their  disposition  to  grow  where  other  plants  are  incapable 
of  existence,  makes  the  study  of  them,  to  my  mind,  the  more 
interesting,  as  it  enables  us  to  find  sources  of  interest  and 
instruction,  where  the  inexperienced,  unobservant  eye  would" 
see  nothing  but  a  barren  waste. 

ESTHER. 

The  trunks  of  trees,  especially  to  the  north  side,  have  an 
abundant  covering  of  mosses;  and  these,  to  the  observant 
natives  of  the  American  wilds,  are  sure  guides  for  the  points 
of  the  compass,  and  thus  serve  to  direct  them  through  their 
pathless  forests.  This  clothing  is  doubtless  given  to  protect 
the  bark  from  the  inclemencies  of  the  winter,  and  also  to 
afford  shelter  to  various  tribes  of  insects  which  take  refuge 
there  in  all  seasons  of  the  year;  and  the  entomologist,  by  ex- 
amining these  tufts  of  moss,  will  find  an  abundant  harvest  of 
rare  species  to  reward  him  for  him  labours;*  so  thickly  is 
creation  animated,  so  truly  is  it  that  nothing  is  made  in 
vain. 

HENRIETTA. 

Look  how  the  juice  is  running  from  that  tree. 

MRS.  F. 

That  is  turpentine,  which  is  exuding  from  the  Scotch  fir 
(Pinus  sylvestris),  the  only  British  species  of  this  numerous 
genus;  but  one  of  the  most  useful  of  them  all,  as,  indepen- 
dent of  turpentine,  it  gives  us  tar  and  pitch. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  is  tar  made? 

MRS.  F. 
The  wood  is  cut  into  billets,  and  placed  in  a  mound  about 

*  Hooker. 

22* 


258  TAR,  PITCH,  ETC. 

eight  feet  in  height,  and  thirty  in  diameter.  This  is  covered 
with  earth,  and  set  fire  to,  at  the  top,  similar  to  the  process 
of  charcoal  burning.  It  is  suffered  to  burn  slowly  with  the 
imperfect  access  of  the  air;  the  tar  runs  off  by  a  ditch  made 
to  conduct  it,  and  is  collected  into  barrels.  Pitch  is  tar 
reduced  by  evaporation.  Pitch,  mixed  with  oil  and  suet, 
makes  shoemakers'  wax.  The  wood  of  the  Scotch  fir  is  the 
red  deal,  of  the  Norway  spruce  (Pinus  abies)  the  white  deal. 
From  the  latter  the  Burgundy  pitch  is  obtained. 


Scotch  Fir. 

ESTHER. 

The  Laplanders  also  make  bread  of  the  bark  of  the  Scotch 
fir.  After  selecting  the  .tallest  and  least  branching  trees  (as 
containing  less  resinous  juice),  the  external  bark  is  carefully 
removed,  and  the  soft,  white,  fibrous,  and  succulent  matter 
collected  and  dried.  When  about  to  be  converted  into  use,  it 
is  slowly  baked  on  the  coals,  and  thus  rendered  porous  and 
hard.  It  is  then  ground  into  powder,  kneaded  with  water, 
and  made  into  cakes,  which  are  baked  in  an  oven,  and  which 
the  Laplanders  eat  during  the  greater  part  of  the  winter, 
and  sometimes  during  the  whole  year.* 
*Medical  Botany. 


JsTONE  PINE.  259 

MRS.  F. 

The  word  pine  is  derived  from  pen  or  pin,  a  crag  or  stony 
mountain,  upon  which  the  pine  delights  to  grow:  but  who 
can  tell  me  what  that  large  fir  tree  is  on  the  right? 

ESTHER. 
Is  it  not  the  stone  pine  (Pinus pinea^l 


Stone  Pine. 
MRS.  F. 

It  is:  this  is  the  tree  which  produces  the  large  seeds  which 
are  so  much  eaten  in  Italy,  where  they  are  called  pignoli.  — 
In  Naples  particularly,  they  are  extensively  used,  and  the 
people  in  the  streets  may  be  seen  roasting  the  cones  before 
the  fire,  in  order  to  cause  the  scales  to  expand,  and  enable 
them  to  get  at  the  seeds,  which  are  as  large  as  almonds.*  — 
This  is  the  cone  which  we  see  placed  in  the  Thyrsus  of  Bac- 
chus, it  being  used  as  his  emblem,  from  the  circumstance  of 
the  ancients  putting  turpentine  into  their  wines,  in  order  to 
give  them  a  flavour. 


*  The  seeds  of  Jlraucaria  imbricata  form  the  entire  subsistence 
of  an  Indian  tribe,  who  harvest  them,  and  bury  them  in  pits  for 
winter  use. 


260  PINETA. 

ESTHER. 

This,  I  suppose,  is  the  pine  which  we  constantly  see  depict- 
ed in  the  landscapes  of  the  Italian  painters. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is.  This  species  is  abundantly  diffused  over  Italy,  and 
near  Ravenna  there  is  a  large  forest  of  stone  pines,  called  the 
Pineta,  which,  in  the  time  of  Augustus,  furnished  timber  for 
the  Roman  fleet;  but  which  is,  in  modern  times,  more  cele- 
brated as  having  been  the  favorite  walk  of  Dante,  its  gloomy 
foliage  being  well  suited  to  the  meditation  of  the  author  of 
the  Divina  Commedia.* 

ESTHER. 

Ravenna  must  be  a  very  interesting  place. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is,  indeed.  Honorius,  as  you  recollect,  made  it  the  seat 
of  the  western  empire.  It  was  successively  taken  by  Odoacer 
and  Theodoric;  restored  to  the  empire  by  the  armies  of  Beli- 
sarius  and  Narses;  in  568  became  the  residence  of  the  Greek 
exarchs;  again  fell  a  prey  to  the  barbarians,  when  taken  by 
Astolphus,  king  of  the  Lombards,  in  752,  and  an  end  put  to  the 
exarchate.  Astolphus  was  dispossessed  by  the  arms  of  Pepin 
who  gave  Ravenna  to  the  church  in  755;  since  which  period, 
it  has  often  changed  masters,  but  was  restored  to  the  Pope  in 
1509,  when  it  became  the  residence  of  a  cardinal  legate. 

ESTHER. 
I  suppose  Ravenna  is  full  of  historical  recollections. 

MRS.  F. 

In  no  city  are  more  remains  to  be  found  of  the  works  of 
the  Lower  Empire,  and  the  number  of  domes  and  towers 
which  are  to  be  seen  at  a  distance,  give  the  city  quite  an 
oriental  appearance.  Here  is  a  curious  octagonal  basilica, 
built  under  Justinian,  in  imitation  of  the  church  of  St.  Sophia, 

*  Dante  refers  to  the  Pineta  in  Purgatorio,  c.  xviii.  1.  20. 


t     RAVENNA.  261 

and  the  vault  represents,  in  large  mosaic,  the  emperor,  with 
Theodora  and  their  court.  The  clmrches.of  Ravenna  are  full 
of  Byzantine  remains,  and  the  cathedral  contains  the  font  for 
"total  immersion,  the  ambones,  (or  two  pulpits  in  which  the 
Epistle  and  Gospel  were  read),  the  Paschal  chair,  and  many 
remains  of  the  manner  in  which  the  interior  of  the  churches 
was  arranged  in  the  primitive  ages  of  Christianity,  of  which 
we  also  find  some  specimens  still  existing  at  Rome.  Near 
Ravenna  is  the  celebrated  church  of  St.  Apollinarius,  the 
only  building  which  remains  of  the  ancient  town  of  Classe, 
formerly  the  port  of  Ravenna.  In  this  church  we  have  a 
series  of  portraits  of  all  the  archbishops  of  Ravenna,  126  in 
number,  from  the  first  contemporary  of  St.  Peter,  to  the 
present  time;  such  as  we  have  at  St.  Paul's,  at  Rome,  of  the 
Roman  bishops  and  popes. 

ESTHER. 

Is  not  the  tomb  of  Theodoric  also  here,  of  which  the  dome 
or  roof  is  composed  of  a  single  stone! 

MRS.  F. 

It  is;  and  so  is  that  of  Dante,  a  most  unworthy  monument 
to  so  great  a  man.  These  are  a  few  of  the  objects  of  interest 
at  Ravenna;  and  when  we  also  recollect,  that  near  it  was 
fought  the  battle  so  glorious  to  France,  but  so  fatal  to  Gaston 
de  Foix  and  the  flower  of  French  chivalry,*  we  must  admit 
that  Ravenna  presents  a  series  of  historic  recollections,  which 
give  a  peculiar  character  and  interest  to  the  place. 

.     .  ESTHER. 

I  think  that  I  have  heard  you  mention  that  on  the  doors  of 
the  cathedral  at  Ravenna  are  nailed  several  planks  of  the  old 
ones,  which  they  replace;  and  that  these  planks,  which  are  of 
the  wood  of  the  vine,  are  most  of  them  a  foot  in  diameter. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  they  are  quite  as  large  as  you  state;  an  extraordinary 
size  for  the  vine  to  attain. 

*  Battle  of  Ravenna,  fought  on  Easter  Sunday,  1512. 


262  THE  BEDEGUAR. 

"  Oh,  aunt,"  said  Frederick,  who  had  run  on  before  them, 
"  look  what  I  have  found,  a  duck's  nest  in  a  tree!" 

The  party  hastened  to  the  spot,  and  found  the  nest  of  a 
duck,  with  some  egg-shells  still  remaining  in  it,  perched  up 
in  an  oak  tree,  about  ten  feet  from  the  ground,*  and  the  duck 
and  its  little  brood  were  to  be  seen  swimming  in  the  pool  ad- 
jacent. 

MRS.  F. 

I  have  before  heard  of  similar  instances  of  ducks  building 
in  trees,  but  this  is  the  first  which  has  ever  come  under  my 
own  immediate  notice.  The  wonderful  part  of  the  circum- 
stance is,  how  the  duck  contrives  to  get  her  young  ones  down 
from  so  great  a  height,  unless  she  carries  them  upon  her  back, 
as  we  see  swans  sailing  about  with  their  little  progeny.  It 
is  a  point  I  long  to  ascertain;  but  I  have  never  met  with  any 
one  who  had  witnessed  the  manoeuvre,  and  could  tell  me  how 
it  is  effected. 


Frederick,  I  will  thank  you  to  bring  me  one  of  the  egg- 
shells, as  I  should  like  to  keep  it  as  a  memorial  of  the  in- 
cident. 

FREDERICK. 

I  will,  Esther,  in  a  minute;  or  I  can  do  it  going  back. 

MRS.  F. 
You  had  better  get  it  now. 

FREDERICK. 

Oh  no,  aunt;  I  will  remember  it. 

MARY.  • 

I,  too,  have  found  something  —  such  a  pretty  robin's 
cushion. 

MRS.  F. 

The  bedeguar,  as  it  is  sometimes  called,  the  work  of  one 
*  Fact. 


THE  MISTLETOE  OF  THE  DRUIDS.  263 

of  the  gall  insects  (Cynips  rosa?),  which  pierces  the  brier,  in 
order  to  deposit  its  eggs;  the  sap  flowing  from  the  part  that 
has  been  pricked  forms  this  excrescence,  which  is  of  the 
same  nature  as  the  gall  nuts  of  the  oak.  The  gall  nut  of 
commerce  (Diplolepis  gallse  tinctoride,*)  comes  from  the  Le- 
vant. 

HENRIETTA. 

Frederick,  when  you  climbed  into  the  oak,  you  should  have 
looked  for  some  mistletoe. 

MRS.  F. 

He  would  have  had  but  little  chance  of  finding  it,  for  it  is 
rarely,  if  ever,  found  upon  the  oak,  but  generally  upon  the 
hawthorn  and  the  apple-tree.  Indeed,  this  circumstance, 
combined  with  others,  has  led  De  Candolle  to  think  that  our 
mistletoe  (Jriscum  album}  is  not  the  plant  of  the  Druids.  He 
says,  that  he  has  travelled  all  over  France,  and  all  the  neigh- 
boring countries,  and  has  seen  the  mistletoe  growing  on  every 
kind  of  tree,*  excepting  upon  the  oak;  while,  on  the  contrary, 
he  has  found,  in  the  environs  of  Parma,  Loranthus  Europasus 


Loranthus  Europseus. 

growing  spontaneously  upon  every  species  of  indigenous  oak; 
and  this  plant  so  clearly  resembles  the  mistletoe  in  appear- 
ance, that  it  has  received  the  same  common  appellation,  and 
may  easily  be  mistaken  for  it.  If  the  mistletoe  had  existed 
upon  the  oak  at  the  time  of  the  Druids,  there  is  no  reason 

*  Even  upon  the  fir.     Mr.  Arundell,in  his  travels  in  Asia  Minor, 
observed  the  mistletoe  upon  the  willow. 


264  MODE  OF  PRESERVING  ICE.  • 

why  we  should  not  still  find  it  so  growing  in  France;  but  if 
the  mistletoe  of  the  Druids  was  the  Loranthus,  we  can  easily 
conceive  that  it  may  have  been  destroyed  in  those  provinces 
where  the  Druidical  worship  was  in  full  force,  and  that  it 
now  only  exists  in  those  where  the  plant  has  not  been  exter- 
minated by  frequent  cutting.* 

The  party  had  now  reached  the  farm,  where  they  found  two 
men  busily  employed  in  burning  charcoal. 

MRS.  F. 

This  is  an  unusual  season  of  the  year  for  this  operation, 
which  is  generally  performed  in  the  spring.  While  I  speak 
to  the  bailiff,  you  can  amuse  yourselves  in.  learning  the  pro- 
cess by  which  charcoal  is  made. 

The  young  people  speedily  questioned  the  charcoal  burner, 
who  explained  to  them  how  he  arranged  the  billets  of  wood 
round  a  centre,  in  a  kind  of  conical  form,  and  then  covered 
them  with  sand,  in  order  to  prevent  the  admission  of  more 
atmospheric  air  than  sufficed  to  keep  the  fire  alive.  They 
saw  him  carefully  cover  in  every  little  aperture  by  which  he 
perceived  smoke  escaping;  he  told  them  the  time  the  wood 
took  in  charring,  which  varied,  according  to  its  quality,  age, 
&c.,  from  one  to  three  days,  during  which  time  he  was  ob- 
liged to  watch  it  day  and  night;  and  having  heard  the  whole 
operation  fully  explained,  the  young  people  rejoined  Mrs. 
Fortescue,  who  was  now  ready  to~~return  home. 

ESTHER. 

Seeing  the  charcoal,  reminds  me  of  the  expedient  used  in 
the  American  ships  for  preserving  ice. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  that1? 

ESTHER. 

A  double  frame-work  or  case  is  made  of  boards,  and  in  the 
space  between  them,  charcoal  is  rammed  down  as  closely  as 

*  De  Candolle,  Proprietes  des  Vegetaux. 


THE  ANGLO-SAXON  LANGUAGE.  265 

possible.     Charcoal  being  an  imperfect  conductor  of  heat,  the 
ice  is  thus  preserved  for  a  length  of  time. 

MRS.  F. 

Sand,  also,  is  so  slow  a  conductor  of  heat,  that  the  red-hot 
halls  used  at  Gibraltar  in  repelling  the  attack  of  the  Span- 
iards, were  conveyed  from  the  furnaces  to  the  bastions,  in 
wooden  wheelbarrows,  having  only  a  layer  of  sand  between 
them  and  the  balls. 

ESTHER. 

Mamma,  what  is  the  derivation  of  the  word  charcoal] 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  derived  from  an  Anglo-Saxon  verb,  which  means 
turned,  turned  about,  or  turned  backwards  and  forwards.  Thus 
charcoal  is  wood  turned  coal  by  the  fire;  churn,  a  vessel  in 
which  the  milk  is  turned  about;  and  charwoman,  commonly 
written  chairwoman,  is  one  who  does  not  abide  in  the  house 
where  she  works,  as  a  constant  attendant,  but  returns  home 
to  her  own  place  of  abode,  and  returns  again  when  required. 
To  set  a  door  or  window  achar,  or  as  some  write  it  on  char, 
and  as  we  term  it  ajar,  is  to  put  it  neither  quite  open  nor 
quite  shut,  but  on  the  turn  or  return  to  either.* 

ESTHER. 

Thank  you,  mamma;  I  should  like  very  much  to  learn 
Saxon. 

MRS.  F. 

It  were  much  to  be  desired  that  the  study  of  Anglo-Saxon 
formed  a  branch  of  education,  for  it  constitutes  the  basis  of 
our  language,  of  which  a  greater  majority  of  words  are 
Saxon  than  would  be  easily  believed.  Of  the  sixty-five 
words  which  compose  the  Lord's  Prayer,  there  are  only  five 
that  are  not  Saxon.  Of  eighty-one  words  in  the  soliloquy  of 
Hamlet,  thirteen  only  are  of  Latin  origin.  Even  in  a  pas- 
sage of  ninety  words  of  Milton,  whose  diction  is  more  learned 

*  Diversions  of  Parley. 
23 


266  STUDY  OF  SAXON  RECOMMENDED. 

than  that  of  any  other  poet,  there  are  only  sixteen  Latin 
words.  In  four  verses  of  Genesis,  which  contain  about  a 
hundred  and  thirty  words,  there  are  no  more  than  five  Latin. 
The  language  of  familiar  intercourse,  the  terms  of  jest  and 
pleasantry,  the  idioms,  the  proverbs,  the  particles  —  all  these 
foundations  of  a  language  are  more  decisive  proofs  of  the 
Saxon  origin  of  ours,  than  even  t)ie  great  majority  of  Saxon 
words  in  writing,  and  the  still  greater  majority  in  speaking.* 

ESTHER. 

But  there  are  a  great  number  of  Latin,  Greek,  and  French 
words  in  our  language. 

MRS.  F. 

So  there  are,  in  the  modern  writers;  but  look  at  Dryden 
and  Addison,  at  the  writers  before  the  restoration,  and  you 
will  see  the  difference.  The  prophecy  of  an  old  writer  is 
come  to  pass,  and  "we  are  now  forced  to  study  Latin,  in 
order  to  understand  English."  The  complaint,  therefore,  is 
not  new,  though  the  practice  complained  of  is  becoming  more 
frequent.  "To  speak  as  the  common  people  speak,  and  to 
think  as  the  wise  think,"  was  the  advice  of  Aristotle;  and 
where  can  we  find  more  simple  and  more  natural  language 
than  in  our  admirable  translation  of  the  Scriptures,  which 
affords  us  a  pure  model  of  genuine  English.  The  most  effec- 
tual method  of  preserving  our  language  from  decay,  and  pre- 
venting a  total  disregard  to  the  Saxon  part  of  it,  is  to  change 
our  present  mode  of  education. -f  Let  children  be  early  taught 
the  Saxon  language,  in  order  the  better  to  enable  them  to 
understand  their  own;  for  they  never  can  thoroughly  arrive 
at  the  meaning  of  a  word  if  they  only  seek  for  its  derivation 
in  the  Latin  or  French,  instead  of  tracing  it  to  Saxon,  its  true 
and  original  root. 

HENRIETTA. 

Frederick,  what  is  that  you  have  in  your  hand? 

*  Sir  James  Mackintosh.  t  Sharp's  Letters  and  Essays. 


THE  CAPILLAIRE  PLANT.  267 

FREDERICK. 

Merely  a  piece  of  fern  taken  close  to  the  root.  You  will 
see,  when  I  cut  it  across,  what  an  excellent  figure  it  makes  of 
an  oak  tree. 

MARY. 

So  it  does.  I  never  saw  it  before.  There  appears  to  be 
a  great  variety  of  ferns  in  the  wood;  what  is  this  one,  mamma? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  the  common  brake  (Pteris  aquilina),  which  contains 
so  much  potash  that  the  ashes  of  the  burnt  root  are  made  into 
balls,  and  used  as  a  substitute  for  soap.*  Like  many  other 
of  the  ferns,  it  contains  tannin,  and  is  employed  in  dressing 
leather,  &c. 

ESTHER. 

Is  not  one  species  of  Pteris  eatable1? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  several  of  the  ferns  contain  a  considerable  proportion 
of  saccharine  matter,  gelatine  and  mucilage.  The  inhabi- 
tants of  New  Zealand  feed  upon  the  roots  of  Pteris  esculenta, 
Cyathea  medullaris,  and  Polypodium  dichotomum,  and  in  the 
East  Indies  the  same  part  of  Diplazium  esculentum  is  used 
for  food.f  Nor  must  we  omit  to  mention  the  Capillaire  plant 
(JLdiantum pedatum)  used  in  the  south  of  France  to  make  the 
syrup  so  called,  which  is  perfumed  with  orange  flower. 

ESTHER. 
How  very  minute  the  seeds  of  the  fern  are. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  Shakspeare  alludes  to  their  being  so  uncommonly 
fine  as  to  be  almost  invisible,  when  he  says,  "  We  have  the 
receipt  of  fern-seed;  we  walk  invisible."  Fern-seeds  were 
formerly  gathered  the  night  before  Midsummer,  and  made  use 
of  for  magical  incantations. 

*  Sprengel.  t  Ibid. 


268  SPECIES  OF  EDIBLE  FUNGI.      . 

ESTHER. 

Aunt,  what  is  the  kind  of  tinder  called  amadou  made  from? 

MRS.  F. 

From  one  of  the  numerous  family  of  Fungi.  Boletus  fo- 
mentarius  is  the  species  most  commonly  used.  Several  of 
these  Boleti  are  eaten  on  the  Continent,  under  the  name  of 
ceps  (Boletus  edulis,  sereus,  &c.)  They  cut  them  in  strips, 
and  dry  them,  in  which  state  they  are  sold  in  the  market. 

ESTHER. 

But  in  France  and  Italy,  they  eat  a  great  many  species  of 
Fungi  which  we  do  not  venture  to  touch  here. 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  of  the  genus  Agaricus,  (to  which  the  common  mush- 
room (Jl.  campestris)  belongs,)  they  eat  from  five-and-twenty 
to  thirty  species;  of  Boletus  upwards  of  six;  several  Jlmanita; 
besides  many  of  Merulius,  Clavaria,  Helvetia,  Peziza,  &c.; 
but  so  strong  is  the  poisonous  nature  of  this  tribe,  and  so 
difficult  is  it  to  recognise  the  species  from  mere  description, 
that  we  cannot  be  too  careful  in  eating  them  indiscriminately. 
In  Paris,  inspectors  are  appointed,  who  visit  the  markets, 
and  examine  every  fungus  which  is  brought  there  for  sale.* 
The  Morel  (Morchella  esculenta),  and  Truffle  (Tuber  cibarium), 
I  have  not  mentioned,  because  you  must  have  often  seen 
them,  as  they  are  both  found  in  England;  the  latter,  abun- 
dantly in  Sussex,  where  little  dogs  are  trained  to  discover 
them.  The  fungus  which  produces  the  dry-rot  in  timber  is 
JLgaricus  Ittchrymans. 

FREDERICK. 

Aunt,  look  at  this  strange  looking  kind  of  caterpillar,  with 
a  snail  shell  fastened  to  it. 

*  The  most  esteemed  species  in  France  are  the  common  mush- 
room, 1'oronge  vraie  (Jlgaricus  aurantiacusj;  Oronge  blanche 
(Jlgaricus  ovoides};  the  two  Mousserons  (Jlgaricus  mousseron  and 
pseudo  mousseron);  the  Chaotarelle  (Merulins  cantharellusj;  the 
Ceps  (Boletus  escu(e?itusj,  and  the  Giorole  (  Clavaria  coralloides ) '. 


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270  THE  GOAT-SUCKER. 


Yes;  it  is  furnished  with  a  kind  of  comb  on  its  legs,  with 
which  it  performs  the  office.  Did  you  ever  see  the  serrated 
claw  of  the  Goat  sucker?  (Caprimulgus  Europseus.') 

HENRIETTA. 

Never,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

Then  I  will  show  you  a  representation  of  it  when  we  go 
home.  This  comb  serves  them  to  clear  the  plumage  of  their 
heads  from  the  insects  which  infest  them,  and,  indeed,  most 
birds  use  their  claws  for  similar  purposes;  and  it  is  remarked, 
those  birds  which  cannot  conveniently  reach  their  heads,  such 
as  ducks,  martins,  &c.  are  those  which  suffer  the  most  from 
vermin;  and,  indeed,  we  may  remark  with  regard  to  our 
domestic  poultry,  that  when  they  run  in  a  stony  or  gravelly 
yard,  they  wear  away  the  points  of  their  claws,  by  scratching 
and  digging,  and  are  in  consequence  disabled  from  cleaning 
their  feathers,  which  renders  them  less  clean  and  healthy  than 
fowls  which  run  at  large. 

ESTHER. 

I  suppose  the  same  kind  of  cleaning  is  performed  by  the 
spider  and  the  ant. 

MRS.  F. 

I  believe  so.     We  also  continually  see  cows  and  horses 
-  cleaning  each  other's  necks  and  heads,  which  the  individual 
cannot  reach  itself  with  its  tongue;  and  in  the  same  way, 
caged  .birds  will  often  assist  each  other  in  the  same  opera- 
tion. 

ESTHER. 

The  cat  also  cleans  itself  and  its  kittens,  not  only  with  its 
claws,  but  with  its  tongue,  which  is  just  like  a  currycomb. 

MARY. 

Yes.    In  the  Library  of  Entertaining  Knowledge*  there 
*  Menageries,  vol.  i.  p.  179. 


THE  GLOW-WORM.  271 

is  a  magnified  representation  of  the  tongue  of  a  lion,  and  I 
suppose  it  is  the  same  in  all  the  feline  species. 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  all  this  time,  we  are  forgetting  our  glow-worm,  which 
I  hope  has  not  run  away;  for  I  intend  taking  it  home,  and 
putting  it  in  a  hox  with  some  snails,  that  we  may  watch  it 
clean  itself  with  its  little  brush. 

MRS.  F. 

And  you  shall  have  my  microscope,  that  you  may  examine 
it  the  more  closely. 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt;  that  will  be  very  interesting. 

FREDERICK. 

Here  is  the  glow-worm,  Mary;  I  will  carry  it  for  you,  and 
you  can  take  the  little  snails. 

MRS.  F. 

I  think  that.  I  had  better  take  charge  of  it,  for  you,  Fred- 
erick, have  Esther's  egg-shells  to  carry. 

FREDERICK. 

Oh,  aunt,  I  had  quite  forgotten  them. 


Just  what  I  anticipated,  when  you  said  that  you  would 
take  them  presently.  Another  instance,  my  dear  Frederick, 
of  the  inconvenience  of  a  habit  of  procrastination  —  so  often 
do  we  seriously  annoy  ourselves  and  others,  by  deferring 
until  another  time  that  which  could  just  as  well  be  done  at 
the  present. 

FREDERICK. 

Aunt,  I  will  run  back  and  fetch  them  now. 

MRS.  F. 
Do  so;  but  strive,  by  all  means,  to  correct  yourself  of  this 


272  DANGER  OF  PROCRASTINATION. 

pernicious  habit,  for  you  will  soon  carry  it  into  the  more 
important  concerns  of  life,  when  it  may  prove  of  the  most 
dangerous  consequences. 

FREDERICK. 

But  aunt,  I  should  never  put  off  any  thing  of  real  conse- 
q  uence. 

MRS.  F. 

So  you  think;  but  habits  once  formed  are  not  so  easily 
shaken  off,  and  the  same  procrastinating  disposition  which 
led  you  to  leave  the  egg-shells  this  morning,  would  cause  you 
to  defer  higher  and  more  serious  concerns.  Beware  then, 
above  all  things,  of  acquiring  bad  habits;  they  are  of  the 
utmost  ease  to  acquire  —  of  the  utmost  difficulty  to  break;  for, 
as  Johnson  truly  observes,  "  minutest,  but  strongest  of  all 
chains  is  the  chain  of  habit." 


273 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

PEARL     OYSTER.  —  ENGLISH     PEARLS.  —  AGE     OF     OYSTER. —  GREEN 

OYSTER.  OYSTERS    OF    LAKE    FUSARO.  — PILGRIM'S  SCALLOP. 

VENUS  MERCKNARIA. — PHOLAS. — SOLEN. — TELLINA. — CARD1UM. — 

COWRIE,   DIFFERENT   SPECIES.  COLORING    MATTER  OF  SHELLS. 

HELIX  JANTHINA. — BULIMUS PERIWINKLE. — STROMBUS  GIGAS. 

CAMEO.  —  NAUTILUS.  —  PORCELLANEOUS    AND    MOTHER-o'-PEARL 
SHELLS. —  TEMPLE  OF  SERAPIS. TEREDO.  —  SPONGE  FISHERY. 


"  Lo!  these  are  but  a  little  portion  of  His  wonders.  Every  shell 
is  like  an  open  book;  every  painted  sea-weed  has  a  lesson  written  in 
its  leaves.  God  is  in  every  place;  He  speaks  in  every  sound  we  hear; 
He  is  seen  in  all  that  our  eyes  behold." 


FREDERICK. 

ESTHER,  I  have  been  looking  over  your  collection  of  shells, 
and  I  wish  you  would  come  with  me,  and  tell  me  some  things 
which  I  want  to  know. 

ESTHER. 

With  pleasure. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then,  in  the  first  place,  which  is  the  oyster  that  produces 
the  pearll 

ESTHElf. 

It  is  this  (Mytilus  margaritiferus).  The  pearls  from 
Ceylon  are,  I  believe,  considered  the  best.  The  fisheries  are 
commonly  rented  by  one  individual,  who  is  allowed  to  em- 
ploy a  hundred  and  fifty  boats  for  thirty  days.  The  20th  of 
February  is  the  day  of  rendezvous;  the  banks  cover  a  space  of 
thirty  miles  by  twenty-four;  and  six  thousand  people  are  em- 


274  BRITISH  PEARLS. 

ployed.     The  greatest  depths  produce  the  finest  pearls;  and 
a  diver  will  collect  from  one  to  four  thousand  oysters  a  day. 

HENRIETTA. 

In  what  part  of  the  shell  is  the  pearl  1 

ESTHER. 

The  finest  are  situated  in  the  fleshy  part  of  the  hinge.  Pearl 
appears  to  be  a  formation  forced  upon  the  animal  by  some 
annoying  substance  in  its  shell,  which  it  covers  with  mother- 
o'-pearl,  as  the  bees  invest  intrusive  wasps  or  snails  with 
wax,  to  fix  them  and  prevent  them  from  putrifying. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  pearls  are  sometimes  found  in  England. 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  but  they  are  not  produced  by  the  same  animal,  but  by 
the  Mya  margaritifera.  Csesar,  on  his  return  from  Britain, 
offered  up  in  the  temple  of  Venus,  a  corslet  of  British  pearls. 
The  river  Conway  was  celebrated  for  its  pearls,  and  a  large 
one  was  taken  in  this  river,  and  presented  by  Sir  Richard 
Wynn,  the  Chamberlain,  to  Catherine,  consort  of  Charles 
II,  and  is  said  still  to  adorn  the  British  crown. 

HENRIETTA. 

This  is  the  common  oyster  (Ostrea  edulis]. 

ESTHER. 

Yes  it  is.  Of  the  purpose  to  which  the  oyster  shell  was 
applied  by  the  Athenians,  I  need  hardly  remind  you;  but  do 
you  know,  Henrietta,  how  to  distinguish  an  old  from  a  young 
oyster! 

HENRIETTA. 

No. 


Its  age  is  seen  by  the  distance  of  the  circles  of  laminae  of 
the  convex  valve,  or  under  shell  of  the  oyster;  this  lower 


OYSTERS  OF  LAKE  FUSARO.  275 

valve  often  forms  a  beak  of  considerable  length  as  the  animal 
increases  in  age.  An  oyster  is  not  fit  for  table  until  it  is  a 
year  and  a  half  old. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  what  are  the  green  oysters'? 

ESTHER. 

The  green  oysters  which  we  see  at  Paris  are,  I  believe, 
chiefly  from  Rochfort,  and  it  is  supposed  that  the  marine 
plants  upon  which  they  feed,  the  growth  of  which  is  favored 
by  the  tranquillity  of  the  water  in  the  oyster  banks  or  pits, 
stain  them  of  this  hue.  The  most  celebrated  French  oyster 
pits  are  at  Ostend;  the  English  at  Milton  and  Colchester; 
and  the  Romans  used  to  send  to  Sandwich  for  their  oysters, 
as  they  did  to  Minturnae  for  their  shrimps,  and  to  Alexandria 
for  their  prawns. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  epicures! 

ESTHER. 

I  have  heard  mamma  describe  the  oyster  beds  in  the  lake 
of  Fusaro. 

HENRIETTA. 

Where  is  that1? 

ESTHER. 

It  is  near  Naples,  not  far  from  Cuma;  and,  according  to 
the  ingenious  theory  of  a  learned  Italian,  it  is  the  Acherusian 
shore  where  ^Eneas  found  Charon  and  his  boat.  This  lake 
communicates  with  the  sea,  and  is  now  one  vast  oyster  bed, 
which  entirely  supplies  Naples  with  oysters.  It  is  the 
property  of  the  king,  who  lets  it  out  on  leases  of  six  years, 
for  seven  thousand  ducats  (about  1400/).  The  lake  is  shal- 
low, and  the  oysters  are  distinctly  seen  at  the  bottom;  a 
quantity  of  canes  are  placed  in  the  water,  and  the  oysters 
which  adhere  to  them  are  considered  the  best,  and  are  re- 
served exclusively  for  the  king.  In  the  same  lake  mamma 


27G  VENUS  MERCENARIA. 

saw  a  quantity  of  gray  mullet  (which  the  Italians  call  cefoli}. 
They  are  enclosed  iu  a  reed  fence,  and  the  spearing  of  these 
poor  imprisoned  fish  is  a  regal  sport.  Wild  boars,  too,  for 
the  king's  hunting,  she  saw  in  a  copse  of  juniper  and  alater- 
nus  adjoining;  and  so  tame  are  the  creatures,  that  they  ran  up 
to  the  men,  who  held  out  a  sieve  of  corn  to  feed  them,  as 
quietly  as  if  they  had  been  common  pigs.  But  here,  Hen- 
.  rietta,  is  the  scallop-shell  of  the  pilgrims  (Pecten  maximus)^ 
or,  as  it  is  called  in  Spain  and  Portugal,  the  shell  of  St. 
James,  because  that  apostle  is  always  represented  with  a 
scallop-shell  in  his  hat,  and  the  pilgrims  to  the  shrine  of  St. 
James  of  Compostella,  in  Galicia,  wear  these  scallops  upon 
their  cloak  and  hat.  But  the  scallop  has  always  been  the 
pilgrims'  ensign  in  their  pilgrimages  to  holy  places,  and  was 
of  such  a  distinguishing  character  that  Pope  Alexander  IV, 
by  a  bull,  prohibited  giving  the  use  of  them  except  to  pil- 
grims who  were  truly  noble.  They  are  of  very  frequent  oc- 
currence in  heraldry.  You  recollect  Parnell's  Hermit: 

"  He  quits  his  cell;  the  pilgrim's  staff  he  bore, 
And  fixed  the  scallop  in  his  hat  before." 

HENRIETTA. 

And  what  are  these  pretty  shells'? 

ESTHER. 

This  drawer  contains  the  genus  Venus,  which,  in  calm 
weather,  may  be  seen  sailing  upon  the  surface  of  the  water, 
using  one  of  their  valves  as  a  boat,  and  the  other  as  a  sail. 
These  shells  are  more  numerous,  and  more  varied  in  warm 
climates;  but  there  are  two  species  which  we  find  upon  our 
own  shores;  one  of  them  (Venus  mercenaries)  is  cut  into  cyl- 
indrical beads,  some  white  and  some  black,  by  the  North 
American  Indians,  of  which  they  form  their  wampum,  or 
treaty  belts,*  which  are  the  symbols  of  friendship  with  them. 
They  also  use  these  shells  for  money,  and  the  women  cover 

*  There  is  a  detailed  description  of  the  wampum  in  the  notes  to 
Gertrude  of  Wyoming. 


THE  PHOLAS. THE  COCKLE.  277 

their  dancing  shoes  with  them,  so  as  to  produce  a  tinkling 
noise. 


Solen. 

NRIETl 

Here  is  the  razor  shell  (Solen},  which  Frederick  and  I  have 
often  picked  up  by  the  sea  side. 

ESTHER. 

It  is.  These  animals  burrow  in  the  sand  of  the  sea  shore, 
ttnd  bury  themselves  in  a  vertical  position,  sometimes  two 
feet  below  the  surface.  This  is  a  stone-boring  animal 
(P/w/as),  which  you  may  often  have  seen  in  the  rocks. 

HENRIETTA. 

Indeed  we  have;  for  we  were  never  able  to  get  one  out 
perfect,  they  are  so  wedged  in, 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  these  animals  pierce  wood  and  stone,  or  bury  them- 
•selves  In  the  sand.  The  shell,  as  you  know,  is  very  fragile; 
but  the  animals  seldom  leave  the  hole  which  they  have  bored. 
They  are  sought  as  an  object  of  food. 

HENRIETTA. 

Cannot  the  common  cockle  (Cardium)  also  bury  itself] 


It  can.  "This  faculty  of  being  able  to  sink,  when  alarmed, 
with  considerable  rapidity,  and  being  able  to  rise  again  to 
the  surface  of  a  mass  of  sand  beheaped  upon  them,,  are  the 
means  of  defence  given  to  these  shells  to  guard  them  from 
the  violence  of  the  breakers  of  our  coasts.  The  hurricane 
24 


278  THE  COWRIE. 

may  expend  its  fury  in  vain,  and  may  sweep  away  even  the 
upper  part  of  the  banks  of  sand,  or  may  roll  pebbles  over 
them;  but,  gifted  with  this  means  of  retreat  and  protection, 
these  testacea  are  enabled  to  remain  below  secure  and  unin- 
jured." 

HENRIETTA. 

And  here  is  a  little  shell  which  I  have  often  picked  up. 

ESTHER. 

It  is  a  Tellina,  of  which  several  species  are  found  on  our 
coast.  I  have  heard  mamma  often  speak  of  a  place  near 
Broadstairs,  called  Shellness,  where  these  shells  had  accumu- 
lated in  such  abundance  that  they  might  be  carried  away  by 
sacks  full;  but  I  have  since  heard  that,  from  a  change  in  the 
currents,  or  some  other  cause,  the  shells  have  entirely  disap- 
peared from  the  place.  There  is  also  a  spot  not  far  from 
Shellness,  called  Pegwell  Bay,  which  is  celebrated  for  the 
number  of  cockles  (Cardiuni}  which  are  found  there.  Are 
you  aware  that  the  common  cockle  (0.  edule)  can  leap]  and 
so  indeed  can  the  pecten. 

HENRIETTA. 

No;  I  never  heard  of  it  before. 

ESTHER. 

They  are  enabled  to  do  so  by  means  of  their  expansile  foot, 
a  structure  which  is  common  to  a  great  majority  of  the  mol- 
lusca,  the  only  instance,  I  believe,  in  nature,  of  a  unipede,  or 
one-legged  organisation.  It  serves  both  as  a  leg  and  as  a 
hand.  By  means  of  it,  some  species  spin  a  byssus;*  while 
others  use  it  as  an  auger;  others  as  a  trowel;  others  as  their 
organ  of  locomotion.  > 

HENRIETTA. 

Here  is  the  drawer  with  the  cowries  (Cypraea).  How 
beautiful  they  are!  the  only  plain-looking  one  among  them  is 
our  little  English  species  (Cypr&a  stolida}. 

*  See  Chap.  XI. 


>  THE  COWRIE.  279 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  it  is  but  an  humble  type  of  its  more  brilliant  con- 
geners of  the  tropics;  for  in  shells  the  intensity  of  coloring 
decreases  as  their  locality  approaches  the  poles,  in  the  same 
manner  that  vegetation  is  influenced  by  its  proximity  to  the 
tropics.  The  less  a  plant  is  exposed  to  the  sun  the  paler  its 
colors,  the  fainter  its  smell,  the  weaker  its  flavor.  Odori- 
ferous herbs  are  found  in  the  greatest  perfection  in  those 
countries  where  the  sun-light  is  strongest,  such  as  sweet 
herbs  in  Barbary  aud  Palestine,  and  tobacco  in  Persia;  and 
the  peach,  the  vine,  and  the  melon,  no  where  acquire  such  a 
flavor  as  under  the  brilliant  sun  of  Cashmere,  Persia,  Italy, 
and  Spain.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  not  this  the  money  cowrie  (Cypraea  moneta),  the  current 
money  of  Bengal,  Siam,  and  Africa! 

ESTHER. 

It  is.  These  shells  are  picked  up  by  the  negro  women  of 
the  Indian  islands  about  the  full  of  the  moon,  when  these 
animals  are  said  to  quit  their  retreats  under  the  sea  at  some 
distance  from  the  shore,  and  traverse  the  rocks.  Cyprsca 
aurantia  is  worn  in  the  Friendly  Islands  as  a"  mark  of  the 
highest  rank,  and  the  African  women  make  fringes  of  cowries 
to  ornament  their  dresses.f 


Cyprsea  Moncta. 
HENRIETTA. 

The  colors  of  some  of  these  species  are  beautiful,  and  the 
regularity  of  their  spots  is  most  wonderful. 

*Lindley. 

t  Mrs.  Lee,  in  her  interesting  "  Stories  of  Strange  Lands.'* 


280  THE  HALIOTIS. 

ESTHER. 

The  skin  is  full  of  pores;  these  contain  the  coloring  fluid, 
which  penetrates  the  calcareous  subtance  before  it  is  hardened, 
and  forms  its  diversified  tints.  These  pores  are  arranged  over 
the  skin  of  mollusca  with  the  same  undeviating  regularity 
as  the  spots  of  the  leopard  or  the  stripes  of  the  tiger,  and  as 
the  liquor  exudes  and  stains  the  shell,  the  uniformity  of  the 
pattern  is,  in  consequence,  in  the  order  in  which  the  pores  are 
placed  in  the  mantle. 

HENRIETTA. 

Here  are  all  the  whelks  (Buccimim). 

ESTHER. 

The  horn  of  the  tritons  is  represented  as  one  of  these  shells. 
Here  is  the  beautiful  Haliotis,  or  Venus'  ear,  the  animal  of 
which  is  eaten  in  some  places.  Look  at  this  row  of  holes, 
or  perforations,  at  its  margin;  each  period  of  the  shell's  in- 
crease is  marked  by  a  new  hole;  and  when  a  fresh  one  is 
opened,  one  towards  the  spire  is  closed,  and  in  it  the  animal 
places  its  siphon.  Seven  to  eight  apertures  appear  to  be  the 
number  which  the  animal  keeps  open  at  a  time. 

FREDERICK. 

This  is  the  violet  snail  (Helix  Janihina),  which  aunt  men- 
tioned when  talking  about  the  shells  which  produce  purple.* 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  this  little  fragile  shell  is  found  in  almost  every  sea, 
both  tropical  and  temperate.  It  dwells  in  the  stormy  ocean, 
sometimes  a  thousand  miles  from  land,  and  offering  no  resis- 
tance to  its  fury,  rides  upon  the  waves  in  perfect  safety.  It 
is  always  found  floating  on  the  water,  and  probably  never 
visits  the  bottom,  or  willingly  approaches  the  shore.  Sup- 
ported by  means  of  a  small  cluster  of  bubbles,  composed  of 
transparent  vesicles,  which  it  inflates  with  air  at  pleasure, 
this  "  common  oceanic  snail"  floats  upon  the  ocean,  and  not 
only  disperses  itself  universal!}^  but  is  also  the  means  of 

*  Chap.  XL 


THE  PERIWINKLE.  281 

disseminating1  other  species,  which  either  attach  themselves  or 
their  eggs,  to  its  shell.*  Mamma  was  telling  us  the  other 
day,  you  remember,  about  the  hybernation  of  the  garden  snail. f 
It  would  appear  that  other  testaceous  inollusca  have  the  power 
of  suspending-  animation,  and  retaining  life,  for  along  period, 
without  air  or  nourishment.  Mr  Lyell  relates  that  four  speci- 
mens of  a  large  species  of  Bulimus  were  brought  to  England 
from  the  straits  of  Magellan.  They  had  been  packed  up  in  a 
box,  and  enveloped  in  cotton,  two  for  a  space  of  thirteen,  one 
for  seventeen,  and  a  fourth  for  upwards  of  twenty  months;  but, 
on  being  exposed  to  the  warmth  of  a' fire,  and  provided  with 
tepid  water  and  leaves,  they  revived,  and  are  now  living  in 
Mr.  Loddidge's  palm-house. 

HENRIETTA. 

This  is  the  common  periwinkle. 

ESTHER. 

It  is.  The  Swedish  peasants  affirm  that  when  these  animals 
(Turbo  littorius}  ascend  the  rocks,  it  is  a  sure  sign  of  a  storm, 
as,  prompted  by  instinct,  they  place  themselves  out  of  the 
reach  of  the  dashing  of  the  waves;  and  when  they  again 
descend  upon  the  sand,  it  is  a  sign  of  a  calm. 

HENRIETTA. 

And  what  is  this  large  shell! 

ESTHER. 

It  is  the  Strombus  gigas,  with  which,  I  have  understood, 
that  the  streets  of  Christianstadt  and  of  Santa  Cruz  are 
paved.  The  beautiful  shell  cameos  which  are  carved  in  Italy 
are  sculptured  from  the  Strombus;  and  the  Italians  procure  the 
greater  part  of  these  shells  from  England,  to  which  country 
they  are  brought  from  the  South  Seas. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  this  shell,  which  looks  so  much  like  a  ram's  horn, 
only  it  is  longer? 

*  Lyell.  t  Chap.  XII. 

24* 


282  MOTHER-O'-PEAUL. 

ESTHER. 

It  is  the  Nautilus  spirula.  Those  specimens  which  you 
have  generally  seen  have  probably  been  broken;  it  being 
usually,  from  its  great  fragility,  found  imperfect.  In  its 
complete  state  it  more  resembles  a  crozier.  This  is  the 
Nautilus  (N.  pompilius}  of  which  mamma  has  an  ornament 
on  the  chimney-piece.  It  is  found  in  abundance  at  Manilla, 
where  the  colored  part  of  the  shell  is  removed,  and  raised 
white  carved  figures  embossed  upon  it,  and  then  two  shells 
being  fastened  together,  the  one  aperture  turned  downwards, 
the  other  upwards,  it  forms  a  graceful  mother-o'-pearl  cup  or 
chalice. 

HENRIETTA. 

Is  mother-o'-pearl  the  same  composition  as  pearls'? 

ESTHER. 

Precisely;  there  is  no  difference  whatever.  Shells  have 
been  divided  into  two  classes;  porcellaneous  and  mother-o'- 
pearl.  The  texture  of  the  first  is  brittle,  and  resembling 
porcelain;  their  surface  is  smooth  and  they  are  often  beauti- 
tifully  variegated.  They  are  composed  of  carbonate  of  lime 
united  to  a  very  small  portion  of  gelatine.  Most  of  the 
univalve  shells,  such  as  whelks,  limpets,  cowries,  &c.  belong 
to  this  class. 

HENRIETTA. 

And  the  second  class,  or  mother-o'-pearH 

ESTHER. 

These  are  mostly  bivalves,  the  oyster  and  mussel  belong  to 
it.  In  both  classes,  the  hardening  principle  is  carbonate  of 
lime;  but  in  the  mother-o'-pearl  it  is  united  with  albumen, 
but  in  larger  quantities  than  the  animal  matter  (gelatine) 
exists  in  the  porcellaneous  shells.* 

HENRIETTA. 

But  here,  Esther,  is  a  little  mussel,  which  I  suppose,  by 
mistake,  is  placed  among  the  univalves. 
*  Brande's  Chemistry. 


TEMPLE  OF  SERAPIS.  283 

ESTHER. 

True.  I  only  received  it  the  other  day,  and  have  not  put  it 
in  its  place.  It  is  the  species  of  mussel  (Mytilus  lithdphagus) 
which  is  found  at  Pozzuoli,  near  Naples,  in  the  temple  of 
Serapis.  The  marble  columns,  at  the  height  of  twelve  feet, 
are  pierced  by  this  perforating  bivalve.  The  holes  of  these 
animals  are  pear-shaped,  the  external  opening  being  minute, 
and  gradually  increasing  downwards.  These  perforations 
are  so  considerable  in  depth  and  size  that  they  manifest  a  long 
continued  abode  of  these  animals  in  the  columns,  for  as  they 
grow  older  and  increase  in  size,  they  bore  a  larger  cavity,  to 
correspond  with  the  increasing  magnitude  of  their  shell. — 
The  granite  columns  of  the  same  temple  remain  untouched. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  is  this  accounted  for1? 

ESTHER. 

We  cannot  but  infer  that  these  columns  must  have  been, 
for  a  long  period,  immersed  in  saltwater,  in  an  erect  position, 
and,  after  remaining  for  so  many  years  submerged,  must  have 
been  upraised  to  the  height  of  about  twenty-three  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  sea;  but  by  what  internal  convulsions  these 
two  changes  must  have  been  affected,  is  unknown.  These 
effects  occur  in  other  instances  in  the  Bay  of  Naples,  and  the 
whole  country  about,  which  is  volcanic;  and  not  far  from 
Pozzuoli,  is  the  Monte  Nuovo,  which  was  raised  in  1538  by 
one  of  those  internal  convulsions;  but  you  will  find  full 
accounts  of  the  volcanic  eruptions  in  the  district  about  Naples 
in  Mr.  LyelPs  interesting  work  on  geology.  The  mention  of 
these  stone-boring  mussels  bring  us  to  the  last  drawer  of  the 
cabinet,  which  contains  the  Tubicolas,  among  which  the  ship- 
borer  (Teredo  navalis}  stands  pre-eminent. 

HENRIETTA. 

Are  not  these  the  animals  which  do  so  much  mischief  to 
ships'? 


284  SPONGE  FISHERIES. 

ESTHER. 

They  are.  This  animal  is  a  native  of  the  equatorial  seas; 
but,  by  adhering  to  the  bottom  of  ships,  it  has  been  trans- 
ported to  Holland,  where,  independent  of  the  injury  it  causes 
among  the  ships,  it  has  been  most  destructive  to  the  piles  of 
the  dykes,  by  which  it  has  more  than  once  threatened  that 
country  with  destruction.  Commerce  has  naturalised  this 
animal  in  England,  and  you  must  have  often  seen  old  ship 
timber  covered  with  its  perforations.  As  they  grow  larger 
they  bury  themselves  deeper,  and  line  their  passage  to  the 
opening,  with  a  kind  of  calcareous  crust  which  exudes  from 
them,  and  forms  a  sort  of  tubulous  shell.  Here  is  one  of 
them.  The  pinna,  chama,  and  other  large  shells  I  keep  in 
this  lower  drawer;  but  mamma  has  already  given  us  a  full 
account  of  most  of  them  in  one  of  our  former  conversations.* 

HENRIETTA. 

This  drawer  is  full  of  sponges. 

ESTHER. 

Yes;  I  am  beginning  a  collection  of  sponges  and  corals, 
but  as  yet  it  is  very  small. 

HENRIETTA. 

Where  does  the  common  sponge  come  from? 

ESTHER. 

The  fishery  for  them  is  chiefly  carried  on  in  the  Mediter- 
ranean, particularly  in  the  Grecian  Archipelago.  The  finer 
sponges  come  from  Constantinople;  the  larger  from  the  vicinity 
of  Tunis  and  Algiers.  The  collecting  of  them  is  attended 
with  danger,  as  they  are  fixed  to  the  rocks  at  the  depth  of 
several  fathoms,  so  that  the  sponge  fishers  must  be  excellent 
divers.  The  ancients,  who  did  not  cover  their  tables  with 
linen  cloths,  used  to  clean  them  with  sponges;  as  they  did 
their  hands,  after  their  meals,  with  pieces  of  bread,  which  they 
afterwards  threw  to  the  dogs,  as  we  learn  from  Homer,  and 

*  Chapter  Xf. 


SPONGE. SEAWEED.  285 

which  also  clearly  explains  the  force  of  the  beautiful  address 
of  the  woman  of  Canaan  to  our  Saviour.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Does  not  iodine  exist  in  sponge? 

ESTHER. 

Yes,  in  considerable  quantities.  You  recollect  mamma's 
allusion  to  it,  when  we  were  talking  about  seaweeds. f  But 
I  hear  Frederick  calling  us;  so  we  must  go  and  put  on  our 
bonnets,  as  it  is  just  the  hour  for  walking. 

*  Matthew,  xv.  27  t  Chapter  V. 


280 
CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  WHALE  FISHERY. 

PORTUGUESE  MAN  OF  WAR. — PALATE  OF  THE  WHALE.— BILL    OF  THE 

DUCK. SPERMACETI. AMBERGRIS. WHALE  FISHERY. — VILLAGE 

OF  SMEERENBERG.  — DECLINE  OF  THE  WHALE  FISHERY. 


There  leviathan, 

Hugest  of  living  creatures,  on  the  deep 
Stretched  like  a  promontory  sleeps  or  swims, 
And  seems  a  moving  land;  and  at  his  gills 
Draws  in,  and  at  his  trunk  spouts  out,  a  sea. 

PARADISE  LOST. 


HENRIETTA. 

AUNT,  I  was  reading-  some  voyages  this  morning,  in  which 
the  author  frequently  mentions  seeing  the  "  Portuguese  man 
of  war"  floating  about  on  the  surface  of  the  ocean.  What 
kind  of  animal  is  it? 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  one  of  the  Zoophytes  (Physalia  genus),  and  is  ren- 
dered remarkable  by  the  beautifnl  appearance  which  it  pre- 
sents when,  in  calm  weather,  it  is  seen  swimming  on  the 
water  suspended  by  a  little  oblong  bladder  filled  with  air, 
surmounted  by  a  rising  crest,  which  it  employs  as  a  sail. 
This  inflated  or  bladder  portion  of  the  animal  glows  with  the 
most  delicate  .crimson  tints,  and  floats  upon  the  waves,  whilst 
its  long  tentacula,  of  a  deep  purple  color,  extend  beneath,  as 
snares  to  capture  its  prey. 

HENRIETTA. 

Where  is  it  found? 


PORTUGUESE  MAN  OF  WAR.  287 

MRS.  F. 

It  inhabits  the  tropical  seas,  but,  during  the  summer 
months  of  the  year,  it  is  found  injiigher  latitudes.  Its  colors 
are  as  evanescent  as  they  are  beautiful,  and  the  bright  crim- 
son, green,  and  purple  tints,  speedily  lose  their  brilliancy 
when  the  animal  is  taken  out  of  the  water. 

ESTHER. 

I  have  understood  that  their  appearance  near  the  sea 
coast  is  considered  as  an  indication  of  an  approaching  tem- 
pest. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is.  But  I  have  not  yet  mentioned  its  stinging  properties. 
Mr.  Bennet,  the  intelligent  traveller  in  New  South  Wales, 
tells  us  that  it  is  amusing  to  see  the  eagerness  with  which 
persons  endeavor  to  secure  the  gaudy  prize;  but  they  soon 
find,  by  experience,  the  rashness  of  the  chase,  for  no  sooner 
do  they  grasp  the  curious  animal,  than,  encircling  its  long 
filiform  appendages  over  the  hands  and  fingers  of  its  captu- 
rer,  it  inflicts  such  pungent  pain,  by  means  of  an  acrid  fluid 
which  it  discharges  from  its  tentacula,  as  to  cause  him  to 
drop  his  prize. 

ESTHER. 


ESTHER. 

Is  the  sting,  then,  so  very  severe1? 


Yes;  but  the  intensity  of  the  effects  depend,  of  course,  upon 
the  size  of  the  animal;  and,  after  it  has  been  long  out  of 
water,  its  power  is  diminished.  Doubtless  this  property  has 
been  given  to  these  little  animals,  by  that  Gracious  Being 
whose  "tender  mercies  are  over  all  his  works,"  to  serve  both 
as  an  instrument  of  defence,  and  also  as  a  means  of  procuring 
and  benumbing  their  prey. 

ESTHER. 

The  French  call  them   Galeres,  and  the   old  navigators 


288  THE  WHALE. 

"  Guinea  ships,"  probably  from  having  first  observed  them 
on  that  coast. 

MRS.  F. 

But  the  Physalia  and  the  Nautilus  are  not  the  only  mol- 
lusca  which  thus  float  upon  the  surface  of  the  ocean.  The 
little  Clio  helicina,  which,  with  another  of  its  species  (C. 
borealis)  form  one  of  the  aliments  of  the  whale,  sails  in  the 
northern  seas,  where  it  abounds. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  is  it  that  the  whale  chiefly  feeds  upon1? 

MRS.  F. 
Upon  small  fish,  worms,  mollusca,  and  zoophytes. 

FREDERICK. 

But  what  small  food  for  so  enormous  an  animal! 

MRS.  F. 

The  construction  of  the  mouth  of  the  whale  is  admirably 
adapted  for  taking  the  food  upon  which  it  subsists.  The  upper 
jaw  is,  as  you  know,  lined  with  the  substance  which  we  call 
whalebone,  the  edges  of  which  are  furnished  with  long  hairs, 
or  filaments.  The  whale  swims  with  great  velocity,  and 
with  its  mouth  wide  open,  by  which  means  an  immense  vol- 
ume of  water,  and  consequently  quantities  of  the  mollusca  it 
contains,  enter  its  mouth.  The  water  is  spouted  up  in  the 
air  by  means  of  a  narrow  opening  pierced  just  above  the 
head,  while  the  food  remains  entangled  in  the  hairy  palate. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  a  beautiful  arrangement!  I  have  heard  people  who 
saw  the  skeleton  of  the  whale  in  London,  observe  how  very 
small  its  swallow  is  for  so  large  an  animal;  but  its  food,  con- 
sisting chiefly  of  these  little  mollusca,  accounts  for  it. 

>        MRS.  F. 

Yes;  the  clio,  of  which  I  was  telling  you,  is  hardly  an  inch 
long. 


THE  DUCK.  289 


Then  these  whalebones  appear  to  answer  much  the  same 
purpose  to  the  whale  as  the  serrated  or  toothed  bill  does  to 
the  duck. 

FREDERICK. 

What  is  that  ? 

ESTHER. 

Ducks,  and,  I  believe,  most  birds  which  live  by  suction, 
have  the  inside  of  their  heads,  towards  the  edge,  thickly  set 
with  rows  of  short,  strong1,  sharp-pointed  prickles.  These 
form  a  kind  of  filter;  the  liquid  substances  into  which  the 
duck  plunges  her  bill  she  draws,  by  the  action  of  her  lungs, 
through  the  narrow  interstices  which  lie  between  these  teeth, 
catching,  as  the  stream  passes  across  her  beak,  whatever  it 
may  happen  to  bring  along  with  it  that  proves  agreeable  to 
her  choice,  and  easily  dismissing  the  rest.* 

HENRIETTA. 

Are  there  many  whalebones  in  the  mouth  of  a  whale? 

MRS.  F. 

The  number  varies  from  eight  to  nine  hundred.  I  saw  the 
skeleton  of  the  whale  to  which  Henrietta  alludes,  and  that 
had  eight  hundred.  This  whale  is  supposed  to  have  died  of 
old  age,  for  the  cartilages  of  the  fingers  of  its  fins  were  quite 
ossified. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  how  long  is  a  whale  supposed  to  live? 

MRS.    F. 

A  thousand  years,  according  to  the  estimation  of  Buflfon 
and  Lacepede;  and  I  have  understood  that  Cuvier  assigned 
from  nine  hundred  to  a  thousand  to  the  one  in  question.  It 
is  calculated  that  a  pair  of  whales  may  live  to  count  not  less 
that  72,000,000,000  of  their  offspring. 

*  Paley. 
25 


290  THE  WHALE. — AMBERGRIS. 

FREDERICK. 

What  is  the  usual  length  of  the  whale? 

MRS.  F. 

The  skeleton  which  I  saw  was  ninety-five  feet  long,  but 
travellers  assert  that  they  have  met  with  whales  of  an  in- 
credible length.*  However,  these  accounts  rest  upon  no 
authentic  foundation,  and  recent  observations!  make  it  appear 
that  the  common  whale  (Salaena  mysticetus)  seldom  exceeds 
seventy  feet  in  length;  the  skeleton,  therefore,  exhibited  is 
unusually  large. 

ESTHER. 

But  is  the  common,  or  Greenland  whale,  the  largest  of  the 
genus] 

MRS.  F. 

No;  though  long  considered  as  such,  it  must  yield  the  pre- 
eminence to  the  Rorqual  (Balsena  6oops),  which  is  found  much 
larger,  but  is  seldom  taken,  for  it  affords  little  oil,  and  is  very 
ferocious  and  dangerous  to  catch,  in  consequence  of  the  vio- 
lence of  its  movements  when  attacked 

MARY*. 
How  large  the  head  of  the  whale  is! 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  its  head  occupies  a  third,  or  even  half,  of  the  whole 
length  of  its  body.  It  is,  you  know,  in  the  head  of  one  genus 
(Physeter)  that  spermaceti  is  found. 

ESTHER. 

And  does  not  ambergris  also  come  from  the  spermaceti 
whale! 

MRS.  F. 

So  it  is  supposed.  This  substance  is  usually  found  in 
opaque  solid  lumps,  floating  upon  the  sea,  and  appears  to  be  a 

*  300  feet.  t  Scoresby. 


THE  WHALE. THE  GRAMPUS.  291 

concretion  formed  in  the  Cachalot,  or  spermaceti  whale. 
Ambergris  is  highly  esteemed  among-  the  eastern  nations,  and 
sells  for  an  enormous  price. 

ESTHER. 

Of  what  size  are  the  lumps  generally] 

MRS.  F. 

They  have  been  met  with  of  an  immense  size.  In  1755, 
the  French  East  India  Company  had  a  lump  weighing  62 
kilogrammes*  (about  132lbs.  13  oz.),  and  the  Dutch  East 
India  Company  gave  11,000  rix  dollars  (about  2,3837.  Gs.  8d.) 
for  a  piece  weighing  91  kilogrammes  (194  Ibs.  14  oz.). 

ESTHER. 

Is  not  the  tail  of  the  whale  its  most  powerful  weapon? 
MRS.  F. 

It  is;  and  indeed  the  whale  has  occasion  for  instruments  of 
defence,  for  it  has  many  enemies  to  encounter.  Its  skin  is 
covered  with  barnacles  (Balanus  genus)  and  other  parasites, 
which  cause  flocks  of  petrels  (Procellaria  pelagica}  and  other 
sea  birds  to  perch  upon  its  back,  in  order  to  devour  them;  but 
its  three  great  enemies  in  the  ocean  are,  the  sword-fish 
(Xiphias  gladius),  the  common  shark  (Squalus  carcharius), 
and  the  grampusf  (Delphinus  gladiator  and  arm).  The 
sword-fish  attacks  the  whale  with  its  terrible  weapon,  and 
the  grampus  assail  it  in  large  troops,  teasing  it  till  it  opens 
its  mouth,  and  then  they  devour  its  tongue. 

FREDERICK. 

How  very  savage.  , 

MRS.  F. 

The  whale  may  be  placed  at  the  head  of  the  animal  king- 
dom, for  to  no  other  animal  has  Providence  assigned  so 

*  A  kilogramme  equals  2  Ibs.  2  oz.  4  drs.  16  grs.  English  weight; 
a  rix  dollar  equals  4s.  4rf.  sterling, 
t  Grampus,  i.  e.  grand  poisson. 


292  WHALE  FISHERIES. 

extensive  a  range.  Time  may  be  said  to  belong  to  it  as  well 
as  space;  its  life  is  centuries;  a  thousand  years  the  term  of 
its  existence.*  In  swiftness  of  motion  it  surpasses  even  the 
trade  winds;  the  latter  only  move  at  the  rate  of  rather  more 
than  thirty-five  feet  a  second;  the  whale,  considerably  faster. 
Supposing  a  whale  were  to  take  twelve  hours  rest  a  day,  it 
would  go  round  the  globe  at  the  equator  in  forty-seven  days, 
and  would  be  only  twenty-four  days  going  from  pole  to  pole. 
And  then  its  size  —  in  which  it  bears  the  same  proportion  to 
the  marine  animals,  as  the  elephant,  the  rhinoceros,  and  the 
hippopotamus,  do  to  terrestrial.  No  animal  is  more  power- 
ful, none  has  such  universal  empire,  f 


Would  you  have  the  kindness,  mamma,  to  give  us  some 
account  of  the  whale  fishery] 

MRS.  F. 

With  pleasure;  I  will  give  you  an  abstract  of  some  notes 
which  I  have  made  upon  the  subject. 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt. 

MRS.  F. 

Though  the  Norwegians  may  have  occasionally  captured 
the  whale  before  any  other  European  nation  engaged  in  so 
perilous  an  enterprise,  the  Biscayans  are  certainly  the  first 
people  who  prosecuted  the  whale  fishery  as  a  regular  com- 
mercial pursuit.}:  They  carried  it  on  with  great'vigor  and 
success  during  the  twelfth,  thirteenth,  and  fourteenth  centu- 
ries; and  whales'  tongues  at  that  time  were  esteemed  as  an 
article  of  food,  and  the  whalebone  also  brought  a  very  large 
price. 

*  Lacepede. 

t  Lacepede,  Buffon,  and  Diet,  des  Sciences  Naturelles. 

$  The  following  is  taken  from  M.  Jonkaire's  work  on  the  Whale 
Fishery,  as  quoted  in  the  14th  number  of  the  Foreign  Quarterly 
lleview. 


WHALE   FISHERIES. 


293 


ESTHER. 

Why  did  this  fishery  cease? 

MRS.  F. 

From  the  same  cause  that  has  occasioned  the  cessation  of 
the  whale  fishery  in  many  other  places,  namely,  the  want  of 
fish.  Whether  the  whales,  from  a  sense  of  the  danger  to 
which  they  exposed  themselves  in  coming  southwards,  no 
longer  left  the  icy  sea,  or  that  the  race  had  nearly  been  de- 
stroyed, we  cannot  determine,  but  it  is  certain  that  they  gra- 
dually became  less  numerous  in  the  Bay  of  Biscay,  and,  at 
length,  ceased  almost  entirely  to  frequent  that  sea;  and  the 
fishermen  being  obliged  to  pursue  their  prey  upon  the  banks 
of  Newfoundland  and  the  coasts  of  Iceland,  the  French  fishery 
rapidly  fell  off.  The  voyages  of  the  Dutch  and  English  to 
the  northern  ocean,  in  order  to  discover  a  passage  to  India, 
though  they  failed  in  their  main  object,  laid  open  the  haunts 
of  the  whale.  The  companions  of  Barentz,  who  discovered 
Spitzbergen  (in  1596),  and  of  Hudson,  who  soon  afterwards 
explored  the  same  seas,  represented  to  their  countrymen  the 
amazing  number  of  whales  with  which  they  were  crowded, 
and  vessels  were,  in  consequence,  fitted  out  by  each  nation, 
the  harpooners  and  crew  being  Biscayans.  The  Muscovy 
Company  strove  to  monopolise  the  exclusive  right  of  fishing 
in  the  seas  round  Spitzbergen,  but  the  attempt  was  not  tole- 
rated. After  several  encounters  between  them  and  the  Dutch, 
the  conviction  became  general,  that  there  was  room  enough 
for  all  parties  in  the  northern  seas,  and,  in  order  to  avoid  the 
chance  of  coming  into  collision  again,  they  parcelled  Spitz- 
bergen and  the  adjacent  ocean  into  districts,  which  they 
respectively  assigned  to  the  different  European  nations;  and 
the  Dutch  soon  acquired  a  decided  superiority  over  all  their 
competitors. 

ESTHER. 

Were  the  whales  very  plentiful  1 
25* 


294 


•SMEERENBERG. 


MRS.  F. 

When  the  Europeans  first  began  to  prosecute  the  fishery 
on  the  west  of  Spitzbergen,  whales  were  found  every  where 
in  great  numbers;  and,  ignorant  of  the  strength  and  stratagems 
of  the  formidable  foe  who  assailed  them,  instead  of  betraying 
any  symptoms  of  fear,  the  whales  surrounded  the  ships  and 
crowded  all  the  bays.  Their  capture  was,  in  consequence,  a 
comparatively  easy  task,  and  many  were  killed  which  it  was 
afterwards  found  necessary  to  abandon,  from  the  ships  being 
already  full. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  suppose  that  a  vessel  cannot  contain  many  of  these  huge 
animals. 

MRS.  F. 

In  the  returns  of  the  fishery,  I  do  not  see  that  they  ever 
bring  home  above  eight  or  ten;  but  whether  a  vessel  would 
hold  more  I  cannot  say.  However,  at  the  period  of  which  I 
am  speaking,  the  whales  being  thus  easily  obtained,  it  was 
the  practice  to  bring  home  only  the  oil  and  the  whalebone, 
and  to  boil  the  blubber  on  shore  in  the  north.  Perhaps, 
nothing  can  give  a  more  vivid  idea  of  the  extent  and  import- 
ance of  the  Dutch  fishery  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  than  the  fact  that  they  constructed  a  considerable 
village,  the  houses  of  which  were  all  previously  prepared  in 
Holland,  on  the  isle  of  Amsterdam,  to  which  they  gave  the 
appropriate  name  of  Smeerenberg. 

ESTHER. 
What  is  the  derivation  of  the  name! 


From  smeeren  to  melt,  and  berg,  a  mountain.  This  village 
was  the  grand  rendezvous  of  the  Dutch  whale  ships,  and  was 
amply  provided  with  boilers,  tanks,  and  every  sort  of  appa- 
ratus required  for  preparing  the  oil  and  the  bone.  Nor  was 
this  all;  the  whale  ships  were  attended  by  a  number  of  pro- 


WHALE  FISHERIES.  295 

vision  ships,  the  cargoes  of  which  were  landed  at  Smeeren- 
berg, which  abounded,  during  the  busy  season,  with  well- 
furnished  shops,  good  wines,  &c.,  so  that  many  of  the  con- 
veniences and  enjoyments  of  Amsterdam  were  found  within 
about  eleven  degrees  of  the  Pole. 


Yes;  it  is  thought  worthy  of  particular  mention  that  the 
sailors  and  others  were  supplied  with  what  a  Dutchman 
regards  as  a  great  luxury  —  hot  rolls  for  breakfast. 

MRS.  F. 

Batavia  and  Smeerenberg  were  founded  nearly  afcthe  same 
period,  and  it  was  for  a  considerable  time  doubted  whether 
the  latter  was  not  the  more  important  establishment  of  the 
two. 

ESTHER. 

What  was  the  cause  of  its  decline? 

MRS.  F. 

The  same  which  had  destroyed  the  fishery  of  the  Biscayans, 
namely,  the  absence  of  fish;  wrhales  gradually  became  less 
common  and  more  difficult  to  catch.  They  retreated  first  to 
the  open  seas,  and  then  to  the  great  banks  of  ice  on  the  east- 
ern coast  of  Greenland.  When  the  site  of  the  fishery  had 
thus  been  removed  to  a  very  great  distance  from  Spitzbergen, 
it  was  found  to  be  the  more  economical  plan  to  send  the 
blubber  to  Holland;  Smeerenberg  was  in  consequence  to- 
tally deserted,  and  its  position  is  now  with  difficulty  dis- 
covered. 

ESTHER. 

Is  the  Dutch  fishery  at  present  of  any  extent? 

MRS.  F. 

No;  it  was  entirely  ruined  by  the  war.  and  all  attempts  to 
revive  it  have  proved  ineffectual;  the  Dutch  having,  during 


296  BRITISH  WHALE  FISHERY. 

the  twenty  years  they  were  excluded  from  the  sea,  lost  all 
that  practical  acquaintance  with  the  details  of  the  fishery,  for 
which  they  had  long  been  so  famous,  and  which  is  so  essen- 
tial to  its  success. 

ESTHER. 

What  other  nations  have  entered  into  the  whale  fishery? 

MRS.  F. 

Hamburg,  Altona,  and  other  parts  of  the  Elbe,  carry  it  on 
with  success;  France,  though  it  preceded,  originally,  all  other 
nations  in  the  trade,  can  hardly  be  said,  for  many  years,  to 
have  had  a  share  in  it.  The  revolutionary  war  destroyed 
every  vestige  of  the  rising  trade  which  Louis  XVI  had  en- 
deavored to  foster.  But  the  French  Government  offer  now 
such  immense  bounties,  that  probably  this  branch  of  com- 
merce may  soon  be  revived  among  them. 

ESTHER. 

Who,  then,  are  now  the  principal  nations  engaged  in  the 
trade? 


The  English  and  the  Americans.  The  occupation  of  Hol- 
land by  the  French,  and  the  consequent  hostilities  in  which 
she  became  involved  with  this  country,  contributed  more  than 
any  thing  to  the  promotion  of  the  British  fishery.  Our  go- 
vernment wisely  offered  to  the  fishers  of  Holland  all  the  privi- 
leges enjoyed  by  the  citizens  of  Great  Britain,  in  the  event  of 
their  settling  among  us.  Many  availed  themselves  of  this 
encouragement,  and  bringing  with  them  their  capital,  their 
industry,  and  their  skill,  prosecuted  the  fishery  with  the 
greatest  success;  but  the  uncertainty  of  finding  fish,  and 
the  risk  of  shipwrecks,*  have  rendered  the  trade  more  of 

*  In  1830,  out  of  87  ships  that  sailed  to  Davis's  Straits,  18  were 
lost,  24  returned  empty,  and,  of  the  remainder,  not  one  had  a  full 
cargo. 


SOUTH  SEA  WHALE  F18HERV.  297 

the  nature  of  a  speculation  than  of  a  regular,  industrious 
pursuit. 

ESTHER. 

Are  not  high  bounties  given  to  the  whale  ships'? 


They  were  formerly.  At  one  time,*  as  high  as  forty  shil- 
lings a  ton  was  given;  but,  in  1824,  these  bounties  were 
entirely  abolished,  and  so  great  was  the  expense  of  keeping 
it  up,  that  the  whale  fishery,  as  a  source  of  national  wealth, 
may  now  be  considered  as  of  little  importance.  Olive,  rape, 
and  linseed  oil,  and,  for  many  purposes,  even  tallow  might 
be  substituted  for  whale  oil;  if,  therefore,  the  fishery  should 
decline  even  still  more,  its  loss  will  probably  be  of  little  in- 
jury to  the  country.  I  have  already  mentioned  that  the 
whales  are  continually  changing  their  haunts.  The  seas  be- 
tween Spitzbergen  and  Greenland  are  now  abandoned,  and 
the  whales  resort  to  Davis's  Straits  and  Baffin's  Bay,  or  to 
the  sea  on  the  coast  of  West  Greenland.  The  various  dis- 
coveries of  our  Northern  navigators  have  made  us  acquainted 
with  new  and  advantageous  situations  for  the  fishery;  but  it 
has  undergone  so  many  revolutions  that  it  probably  will  again 
be  necessary,  in  a  few  years,  to  follow  the  whale  into  new 
and  more  inaccessible  haunts. 

ESTHER. 

Mamma,  you  have  not  alluded  to  the  South  Sea  fishery. 

MRS.  F. 

That  was  not  prosecuted  by  the  English  until  about  the 
beginning  of  the  American  war,  and  it  had  previously  been 
entered  into  by  the  Americans,  who,  for  a  lengthened  period, 
have  carried  on  the  whale  fishery  with  greater  vigor  and  suc- 
cess than  perhaps  any  other  people.  For  half  a  century  after 
its  commencement,  they  found  an  ample  supply  of  fish  on 
their  own  shores,  but  the  whales  having  abandoned  them,  the 

*  In  1749. 


298  AMERICAN  WHALE  FISHERY. 

American  navigators  entered  with  extraordinary  zeal  into 
the  fisheries  carried  on  in  the  Northern  and  Southern  oceans, 
and  no  nation  has  ever  carried  this  perilous  mode  of  hardy 
fndustry  to  the  extent  to  which  it  has  been  pursued  by 
them. 


299 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

VEGETABLE  PHYSIOLOGY. 

\f  ATCH  OF  FLORA. — ANTIPATHIES. — SMELL  OF  FLOWERS. — FLOWERS 
IN  A    ROOM.  —  LEAVES.  —  NECESSITY  OF    ALTERNATION  OF  LIGHT 

AND  DARKNESS  TO    PLANTS. ACIDITY    OF    FRUITS.  — STARCH. 

BRAZIL  NUTS. —  GENIPA. —  CANNON-BALL  TREE. — CALABASH. — IN- 
FLAMMABLE PLANTS. — FRAXINELLA  AND  LYCOPODIUM. —  DOODOE 

NUTS. STORMY  PETREL.  GUACHARO.  —  BOG  FIR    AND    OAK. 

PAPER  FROM  PEAT. — C.KSALPINIA  PLUVIOSA. —  CORYANTHES  MACU- 
LATA. — SHAGREEN.—  FRAGRANCE  OF  FLOWERS  AFTER  RAIN. 


What  are  flowers?  perfect  things 
Breathing  in  unwholesome  air; 
Left  to  aid  Hope's  weary  wings 
To  soar  above  the  clouds  of  care. 

FLORA'S  OFFERING. 


MRS.  F. 

HERE  is  that  table  which  I  once  promised  to  show  you, 
giving  the  hours  of  expansion  and  closing  of  different  flow- 
ers; or,  as  it  is  usually  termed,  a  dial  or  watch  of  Flora.  It 
may  amuse  you  to  verify  its  correctness  by  your  own  obser- 
vations. But  I  should  tell  you  that  the  hours  given  are  those 
which  are  recorded  by  Linnaeus  for  Upsal,  and  by  De  Can- 
dolle  for  Paris;  they  will  therefore  not  exactly  agree  with  the 
time  here.  Most  of  the  flowers  selected  are  common,  either 
wild  or  in  our  gardens. 

ESTHER. 

In  what  manner,  then,  does  climate  influence  the  opening 
and  shutting  of  flowers? 


300 


WATCH  OF  FLORA. 


MRS.  F. 

In  proportion  as  the  climate  is  colder,  the  expansion  takes 
place  the  later.  Thus,  a  plant  which  would  open  at  six 
o'clock  in  the  morning  at  Senegal,  would  only  expand  at 
eight  or  nine  in  France,  and  at  ten  in  Sweden;  so  that  the 
expansion  is  calculated  to  be  an  hour  later  for  every  ten  de- 
grees of  latitude.  Heat  and  light  would  therefore  appear  to 
be  the  chief  agents  in  the  opening  and  closing  of  flowers;  but 
that  they  are  not  the  only  ones  is  evident,  from  some  flowers 
opening  only  at  night,  and  others  being  also  subjected  to  at- 
mospheric influence. 

ESTHER. 

Such  as  the  little  scarlet  pimpernel  (Jlnagallis  arvensis),  or 
the  convolvuli,  which  close  when  it  is  going  to  rain. 

MRS.  F. 

Or  the  Virginian  sow  thistle,  which  if  it  shuts  its  flowers 
in  the  evening,  we  may  be  sure  of  a  fine  day;  and  if  it  opens 
them,  we  may  prognosticate  that  the  next  morning  will  be 
rainy.  Indeed,  a  number  of  flowers  might  be  enumerated 
which  oifer  parallel  hygroscopic  phenomena;  and  if  they 
were  collected,  we  might  form  a  barometer,  as  well  as  a 
watch,  of  Flora,  but  here  is  the  Table  which  I  promised  to 
show  you: 

WATCH  OF  FLORA. 


Hour  of 
shutting  at 
Upsal. 

NAME  OF  THE  PLAXT. 

Hoi 
open 
Upsal. 

rof 
ing  at 
P  ris. 

A.  M. 

P.M. 

A.  M. 

A.    M. 

Convolvulus  nil  (the  large  annual  species 
Convolvulus  sepium  (common  white  bind- 

3—4 

weed)                  -             - 

3—4 

9-10 

Tragopogon  pratense  (goat's  beard) 
Matricaria  suaveolens       - 

3—5 

4—5 
4—5 

3 

Leontodon  tuberosum        - 

4—5 

Picris  hieracioidcs            - 

4—5 

10 

Cichorium  intybus  (wild  endive)               -     J4  —  5 

Other  Cichoraceous  plants 

4—5 

4—5 

10-12 
10 

Crepis  tectorum                 - 
Picridium  tingitanum 

4—5 
4-6 

WATCH  OF  FLORA. 


301 


Hour  of 
Shutting  at 
Upsal. 

NAME  OF  THE  PLANT. 

Hutu-  nl 
Opening  at 
|,-;.l.      Paris. 

A.  M. 

P.M. 

A.  M.." 

A.  M. 

11-12 

Sonchus  oleraceus          - 

5 

7 

l*apaver  nudicaule          - 

5 

5 

7-8 

Hemerocallis  fulva         - 

5 

Moist  Cichoracese           - 

5 

Momordica  elaterium 

5—6 

Lapsana  communis,  and  many  cichora- 

ceous  plants                  -             -             - 

5—6 

5—6 

Convolvulus  tricolor 

5—6 

8—9 

Leontodon  taraxacum  (dandelion) 

5—6 

11 
10 

1 

Crepis  alpina                   - 
Rhagadiolus  edulis        - 

5—6 
5—6 

4-5 

Hypochseris  maculata 

6 

6 

5 

Hieracium  umbellatum 

6 

Solanum,  several  species 

6 

Convolvulus  siculus        - 

6 

Sonchus  (sow  thistle),  several  species 

6—7 

6—7 

Hieracium  (hawkweed),  several  species 

6—7 

6—7 

2 

Hieracium  nturorum 

6—7 

3-4 

Hieracium  pilosella 

6—7 

1-2  Crepis  rubra                    - 

6—7 

10-12 

Sonchus  arvensis             - 

6—7 

4 

Alyssum  utriculatum                   - 

6—8 

3 

Leontodon  hastile           -       ,(  -p  • 

7 

Sonchus  lapponicus        - 

7 

Lactuca  sativa                 - 

7 

7 

3-4 

Calendula  pluvial  Is  (small  Cape  mary- 

gold)               -       '     - 

7 

7—8 

5 
3-4 

Nymphsea  alba  (\vhite  water) 
Nuphar  (yellow  ditto) 
Anthericum  ramosum 

7 
7 

7 

7 

7 

Damelina  sativa           "- 

7 

Prenanthes  muralis        -       **-,«•--; 

7 

2 
3 

Mesembryanthemum  barbatum         :     i»  ' 
Vfesembr)'anthemum  linguiforme 
Campanula  speculum  (Venus'  looking- 

7—8 
7—8 

7—8 

glass)              '..-'•.. 

7—8 

2 

Ducumis  anguria  (prickly  cucumber) 
Hieracium  auricula 

8 

7—8 

Anagallis  arvensis 

8 

8 

1 

Dianthus  prolifer 

8 

Nolana  prostrata            -                          •  * 

8—9 

1 

Hieracium  chondrilloides 

9 

12 

3 

Calendula  arvensis 

9 

2-3 

Arenaria  rubra 

9-10 

3-4 

Mesembryanthemum  crystallinum  (Ice- 

3 

plant)               -                          - 
Mesembryanthemum  nodiilorum 

9-10 
10-11 

9-10 
10-11 

Portulaca  sativa  (purslane) 

11 

Ornithogalum  umbellatum    (called  on 

that  account  "Dame  d'onze  heures") 

11 

WATCH  OF  FLORA. 


Hour  of 
Shutting  at 

Upsal. 

NAME  OF  THE  FLAW  T. 

Hou 
Opei 
TJpsal. 

rof 
ing  at 
P»ri». 

A.M. 

P.  M. 

P.M 

A.  M. 

Tigrida  pavonia              - 

H 

Most  Ficoideous  plants 

12 

P.M. 

Scilla  pomeridiana         ... 
Mirabilis  jalapa  (marvel  of  Peru) 

5 

2 
6—7 

Pelargonium  triste 
Mesembryanthemum  noctifiorum 
CEnothera  tetraptera       - 

6 

7—8 
7—8 

CEnothera  suaveolens 

7—8 

12 

Cereus  grandiflorus  (night-blowing  Ce- 

reus)                 -                          - 

9-10 

7—8 

Silene  noctiflora              ... 

9-10 

5—6 

Convolvulus  purpureus 

10 

HENRIETTA. 

Thank  you,  aunt.  I  should  like  to  copy  this  table,  if  you 
will  allow  me.  But,  talking  of  flowers,  why  is  it  that  you 
told  me  not  to  carry  the  tuberose  up  into  my  room! 

MRS.  F. 

Because  the  scent  is  so  powerful  as  to  be  insupportable  to 
many  persons  of  weak  nerves.  Indeed  the  spasmodic  affec- 
tions produced  by  the  odors  of  flowers,  are  more  common  than 
is  generally  supposed,  but  vary,  of  course,  according  to  the 
constitution  of  the  individual. 

ESTHER. 

Mary  de  Medicis  could  not  bear  the  sight  of  a  rose,  even  in 
painting;  and  Cardinal  de  Guise  would  faint  away  at  the 
sight  of  the  same  flower. 


But  these  were  natural  antipathies,  such  as  that  of  Boyle  to  a 
spider;  for  in  these  instances,  the  mere  sight  of  the  rose,  with- 
out smelling  it,  appears  to  have  been  sufficient  to  disturb  the 
tranquillity  of  the  individual;  but  I  am  at  present  alluding 
to  the  effect  of  vegetable  odors  upon  the  senses.  Few  can 
bear  the  fragrance  of  the  lilac  or  jonquil,  especially  in  a 
room;  and  even  violets,  the  last  flowers  to  be  suspected, 


ANTIPATHIES  TO  FLOWERS.  303 

have  in  many  cases,  proved  deleterious;  De  Candolle  says 
he  has  witnessed  many  ladies  faint  from  carrying  too  many 
of  them  on  their  persons,  or  from  having  placed  them  too 
near  them  when  asleep.  It  is  asserted  that  people  have  died 
from  being  shut  up  in  a  room  in  which  the  oleander  was  in 
flower;  hysterics  have  been  brought  on  by  the  musk  mallow; 
saffron  has  been  known  to  produce  swooning,  and  the  flowers 
of  Lobelia  longiflora  have  caused  suffocation.* 

ESTHER. 

And  some  trees  are  equally  hurtful;  the  elder,  the  walnut, 
and  the  anagyris,  bring  on  headache  in  persons  who  sleep 
beneath  their  shade;  and  the  Manchineel  tree  is  said  to  have 
proved  fatal  to  travellers  who  have  trusted  to  its  shelter. 

MRS.  F. 

I  believe  that  the  idea  that  plants  vitiate  the  air  of  a  room 
at  night,  because  at  that  time  they  part  with  carbonic  acid 
and  inhale  oxygen,  is  much  exaggerated.  If  it  is  vitiated  at 
all,  it  is  by  their  powerful  odors,  which,  as  I  have  just  shown 
you,  act  upon  the  nerves  of  many  persons.f 

ESTHER. 
But  they  give  out  carbonic  acid  at  night,  do  they  not? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  but  a  single  human  being  will  vitiate  the  air  more  than 
a  hundred  plants.  However,  the  strong  smell  of  flowers  is 
sufficient  reason  for  banishing  them  from  a  sleeping  apartment. 
But  it  has  been  ascertained  that  the  slight  diminution  of  oxy- 
gen, and  increase  of  carbonic  acid,  which  takes  place  during 
the  night,  bears  no  considerable  proportion  to  the  degree  in 
which  the  contrary  effect  is  observable  during  the  day;  and 
therefore  the  immense  quantity  of  vegetables  which  cover  the 
globe  are  constantly  increasing  the  quantities  of  atmospheri- 
cal oxygen  which  is  diminishing  by  the  breathing  of  animals, 
and  so  contribute  to  render  again  fit  for  inspiration,  the  air 

*  Lindley.  t  Lindley. 


304  THE  LEAVES  OF  PLANTS. 

which  has  been  vitiated.  Thus  Providence  provides  a  living 
check  upon  malaria,  and  has  admirably  ordained  that  one  of 
the  kingdoms  of  nature  should  render  and  maintain  the  world 
in  such  a  state  as  to  be  habitable  by  the  other. 

ESTHER. 

Leaves  perform  important  functions  to  plants. 
MRS.  F. 

Yes;  they  are  at  once  the  organs  of  respiration,  digestion, 
and  nutrition. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  why  do  gardeners  so  often  take  them  off  the  fruit 
trees? 

MRS.  F. 

From  the  greatest  ignorance.  If  a  branch  be  stripped  of 
its  leaves  for  a  whole  summer,  it  will  either  die  or  not  increase 
in  size  perceptibly.  Deprive  a  tree  of  its  leaves,  and  the 
flowers  lose  their  color;  and  if  it  be  before  the  fruit  has  com- 
menced ripening,  the  fruit  will  fall  off  and  not  ripen;  or  if  in 
a  more  advanced  stage,  it  will  diminish  its  flavor  considera- 
bly. This,  therefore,  is  one  of  the  numerous  examples  of  the 
benefit  which  is  daily  accruing  to  horticulture  from  the  know- 
ledge of  vegetable  physiology. 

ESTHER. 
Do  plants  grow  most  by  night,  or  by  day? 

MRS.  F. 

They  grow  chiefly  by  day,  as  appears  from  the  few  observa- 
tions which  have  been  made  upon  the  subject.  Wheat  and  barley 
were  found  to  grow  by  day  nearly  twice  as  fast  as  by  night; 
but  the  diurnal  changes  of  day  and  night  are  as  necessary  to  the 
well-being  of  plants  as  they  are  to  that  of  animated  beings. 
If  plants  were  kept  incessantly  growing  in  light,  they  would 
be  perpetually  decomposing  carbonic  acid,  and  would  in  con- 
sequence, become  so  stunted  that  there  could  be  no  such  thing 


GROWTH  OF  PLANTS.  305 

as  a  tree,  as  it  is  actually  the  case  in  the  polar  regions,  where 
one  long  day  and  night  comprise  the  year.  If  on  the  other 
hand,  they  grow  in  constant  darkness,  their  tissue  becomes 
excessively  lengthened  and  weak;  no  decomposition  of  car- 
bonic acid  takes  place;  none  of  the  other  parts  acquire  solidi- 
'ty  and  vigor;  and  finally,  they  perish.  But  under  the  beautiful 
arrangement  of  Providence,  plants  which  in  the  day  become 
exhausted  by  the  decomposition  of  carbonic  acid,  and  by  eva- 
poration, repair  their  strength  at  night,  by  inhaling  oxygen 
copiously,  and  so  forming  a  new  supply  of  carbonic  acid, 
by  absorbing  moisture  from  the  earth  and  air  without  losing 
any  portion  of  it.* 


I  suppose  that  the  reason  that  fruits  are  more  acid  in  the 
morning  than  in  the  eveningf  is,  that  in  the  sun's  rays,  they 
decompose  their  carbonic  acid,  and  part  with  their  oxygen,  of 
which  they  do  not  gain  a  fresh  supply  until  night. 

MRS.  F. 

It  is  so.  Botanists  have  also  found  that  leaves  which  are 
acid  in  the  morning,  and  will  turn  litmus  paper:}:  red,  pro- 
duce no  effect  upon  it  by  noon,  and  are  then  tasteless.  Starch, 
again,  in  which  carbon  forms- so  large  a  proportion,  and  which 
in  the  potato,  cassada,  corn,  beans,  peas,  &c.,  contributes  so 
largely  to  the  nourishment  of  man,  depends  for  its  abundance 
essentially  upon  the  presence  of  light.  It  also  increases  the 
saccharine  matter  in  the  sugar-cane,  and  completes  the  forma- 
tion of  oil  in  the  seeds  of  oleaginous  plants. 

ESTHER. 

Mr.  Knight,  the  President  of  the  Horticultural  Society,  has 
turned  this  known  fact  to  great  account  in  the  cultivation  of 
potatoes.  He  leaves  wide  intervals  between  his  rows,  and 
makes  them  lie  from  north  to  south,  so  as  to  expose  as  large 

*  Lindley.  t  Ibid.  J  See  Chapter  XI. 

26* 


306  POTATOES.  —  STARCH. 

a  surface  as  possible  to  the  light.*  Potatoes  grown  in 
orchards  are  watery,  in  consequence  of  the  leaves  and  branches 
of  the  trees  intercepting  the  light;  the  quantity  of  nutrition 
they  contain  being  in  direct  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  light 
which  they  receive. 

.    MRS.  F. 

Starch  is  a  common  secretion  among  vegetables;  besides  the 
plants  already  alluded  to,  we  find  it  in  the  tubers  of  the  Jeru- 
salem artichoke;  in  fleshy  roots,  as  in  the  the  briony;  in  the 
centre  of  the  stems,  as  in  the  sago  palm;  in  the  receptacles 
of  plants,  as  in  the  artichokes;  in  the  liber  of  some  trees,  as 
the  pine  and  the  birch;  and  in  the  rind  of  certain  fruits,  as  the 
date,  the  bread-fruit,  &c. 

ESTHER. 

Did  you  ever,  Henrietta,  see  those  triangular  nuts  in  the 
shops  which  are  called  Brazil  nuts? 

HENRIETTA. 

Yes,  often,  and  have  wondered  what  they  were. 


They  are  the  fruit  of  a  large  tree,  of  from  a  hundred  to  a 
hundred  and  twenty  feet  in  height,  and  with  a  trunk  from  two 
to  three  feet  in  diameter.  It  is  called  the  Juvia  or  Almen- 
dron.  Its  botanical  name  is  Bertholletia  excelsa,  and  it 
belongs  to  the  natural  order  of  Myrtacex.  It  does  not  flower 
until  its  fifteenth  year,  and  its  leaves  are  two  feet  long.  The 
seeds,  which  are  sold  in  England  and  Portugal,  under  the 
name  of  Brazil  nuts,  form  a  principal  article  of  commerce 
with  the  natives  of  the  Esmeralda,  the  Orinoco,  and  the 
Amazon.  There  are  generally  from  fifteen  to  two-and-twenty 
nuts  enclosed  in  a  shell  or  pericarp,  which  is  less  than  fifty 
or  sixty  days  in  forming,  and  of  which  the  woody  part, 
nevertheless,  is  so  hard  that  though  only  half  an  inch  in 
thickness,  it  is  with  difficulty  that  it  can  be  sawn  asunder. 

*  Hints  on  Vegetation  by  Sir  John  Sinclair. 


BRAZIL  NUTS. 


307 


Brazil  Nuts. 

MRS.  F. 

It  has  been  already  observed  by  an  eminent  naturalist,* 
that  the  wood  of  fruits  generally  attains  a  degree  of  hardness 
not  to  be  met  with  in  the  wood  of  the  trunk  of  trees; — but  I 
interrupt  you. 

ESTHER. 

This  pericarp  is  spherical,  and  from  twelve  to  thirteen 
inches  in  diameter.  The  weight  of  these  fruits  is  so  enor- 
mous that  one  traveller  asserts,  that  the  natives  dare  not 
venture  into  the  forests  without  covering  their  head  and 
shoulders  with  a  shield  of  very  hard  wood.  De  Humboldt 
says  that  these  shields  were  not  known  on  the  Esmeralda, 
where  he  saw  the  trees,  but  that  the  natives  spoke  of  the 
danger  which  they  incurred  when  these  fruits,  which  are 
of  the  size  of  a  child's  head,  began  to  ripen,  and  fell  from 
a  height  of  fifty  or  sixty  feet  to  the  ground,  when  they  make 
an  enormous  noise  by  their  fall.  The  nuts  detach  themselves 
in  time,  and  move  freely  within  their  shell,  and  the  rattling 
noise  they  then  make  when  dropping  from  the  tree,  excites 
the  greediness  of  the  Capuchin  monkies  (Simia  chtropotes), 
who  are  singularly  fond  of  the  Brazil  nuts.f 


Richard. 


Humboldt,  Voyages,  t.  viii. 


308  THE  CANNON-BALL  TREE. 


That  is  like  the  Genipa,  the  fruit  of  which  in  its  fall  is 
said  to  crack  upon  the  ground  with  the  report  of  a  pistol,  and 
to  give  notice  to  the  land  crabs,  who  immediately  hasten  to 
the  tree  to  seek  a  repast  —  one  of  those  innumerable  modes 
by  which  Providence  attracts  the  animal  to  the  food  upon 
which  it  is  destined  to  live,  and  gives,  in  endless  variety, 
*'  the  means  proportioned  to  the  end." 

ESTHER. 

There  is  also  the  Cannon-ball  tree,  (Couroupita  Guianensis] 
belonging  to  the  same  order  as  the  Brazil  nut,  which  grows 
in  the  dense  forests  of  Cayenne,  and  the  fruit  makes  a  similar 
noise  in  falling,  whence  the  tree  derives,  in  some  measure,  its 
name.  But  it  also  has  procured  this  appellation  from  the 
fallen  pericarp,  or  fruit,  which  strew  the  ground,  exhibiting 
the  scar  or  hole  by  which  they  were  attached  to  the  stalk, 
and  which  so  closely  resemble  the  cannon  shell,  that  one 
might  easily,  at  first  sight,  imagine  that  a  company  of  artille- 
ry had  bivouacked  in  its  shade. 

HENRIETTA. 

Is -the  tree  large? 

ESTHER. 

It  is  from  fifty  to  sixty  feet  high,  and  covered  with  a  pro- 
fusion of  brilliant  scarlet  flowers,  which  are  highly  fragrant. 
The  fruit  are  round,  and  from  four  to  eight  inches  in  diameter; 
when  cut  and  ripe  they  diffuse  a  most  intolerable  odor,  but, 
in  a  less  mature  state,  the  pulp  is  employed  to  afford  a  refresh- 
ing drink  in  fevers.  The  shell  is  used  in  South  America  for 
the  same  purpose  as  the  Calabash  (Crescentia  cujete.}* 

MRS.  F. 

The  shell  of  the  Calabash  sometimes  constitutes  the  sole 
article  of  furniture  of  the  Carib  Indians.  By  ligatures 

*  Hooker,  Botanical  Magazine. 


INFLAMMABLE  PLANTS.  309 

applied  to  the  fruit  while  it  is  still  growing1,  it  is  made  to 
assume  a  variety  of  forms,  to  adapt  it  to  the  various  purposes 
for  which  they  use  it.  They  often  carve,  polish,  and  stain  it, 
and  their  goblets,  water  cans,  and  even  their  kettles  to  boil 
water,  are  made  from  it;  the  hard  woody  shell  being  so  thin, 
and  close-grained,  as  to  stand  fire  several  times  before  it  is 
destroyed. 

HENRIETTA. 

Aunt,  I  heard  the  other  day,  that  the  flowers  of  the  Nastur- 
tium give  out  sparks  in  the  evening. 


We  are  told  by  Linnaeus  that  his  daughter  observed  this 
phenomenon  in  the  common  Nasturtium  (Tropacolum  majus}, 
but  the  Fraxinella  (Dictamnus  Fraxindla}  is  the  most  curi- 
ous instance  of  this  exhalation  of  inflammable  vapor  from 
plants.  Its  leaves  and  stem  are  covered  with  little  brown 
resinous  glands,  emitting  a  powerful  balsamic  odor.  This 
plant,  in  warm  weather,  is  surrounded  by  an  inflammable 
atmosphere,  formed  by  its  own  vapor,  which  will  take  fire 
when  a  light  is  applied  to  it,  and  produce  a  bright  rapid  flame 
which  does  no  injury  to  the  plant.  It  has  been  ascertained, 
that  this  vapor  is  volatile  oil  suspended  in  the  atmosphere. 
Then  there  is  the  club  moss  (Lycopodium  clavatum),  the 
minute  volatile  seeds  of  which  are  highly  inflammable,  like 
powdered  sulphur,  and  are  used  in  Germany  for  artificial 
lightning  on  the  stage.  When  dispersed  in  the  air,  they  take 
fire  with  a  candle,  and  suddenly  explode.* 


In  Captain  Beechey's  Voyage,  we  are  told  that  the  inhab- 
itants of  Pitcairn's  Island  and  some  others  find  an  excellent 
substitute  for  candles  in  the  doodoe  or  candle  nuts,  f  These 

*  Sir  J.  Smith. 

t  Beechey's  voyage,  vol.  i.  and  Lord  Byron's  voyage  to  the 
South  Sea  Islands. 


310  THE  GUACHARO. 

nuts  are  heart-shaped,  and  are  about  the  size  of  a  walnut.  — 
They  are  strung  upon  the  fibres  of  a  palm  leaf,  and  thus 
form  a  torch,  which  gives  a  very  good  light;  but  the  only 
inconvenience  is  that  these  nuts  give  a  considerable  heat, 
and  crack  and  fly  about  to  the  discomfiture  of  the  persons 
who  chance  to  be  near  them.  The  tree  which  produces  them 
(Jlkurites  triloba)  is  large,  bears  a  handsome  blossom,  and 
supplies  ornaments  for  the  ears  and  hair.  It  belongs  to  the 
order  Euphorbiacese,  and  independent  of  the  use  which  is 
made  of  its  oily  nuts,  the  inner  bark  yields  a  dark  red  dye, 
and  the  tree  affords  a  gum  with  which  the  Otaheitans  dress 
their  cloth. 


Aleurites  Triloba. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  the  most  curious  candle  which  I  ever  heard  of  is  that 
used  in  the  Ferroe  Islands,  where  the  inhabitants  kill  the 
stormy  petrel  (Procellaria pelagica)  in  great  numbers;  and  the 
bird  is  so  fat  and  oily  that  they  only  pass  a  wick  through  its 
body,  and  it  serves  the  purpose  of  a  lamp. 

MRS.  F. 

So  we  are  told,  on  the  authority  of  Pennant;  but  I  believe  the 
bird  that  produces  the  greatest  quantity  of  fat,  is  the  Guacharo 
(Steatornis  caripensis)  of  South  America,  which  the  Indians 
destroy  in  immense  numbers  for  its  fat,  which  they  eat.  This 
singular  bird  is  the  first  example  of  a  nocturnal  bird  among  the 
Passerine  class.  It  is  of  the  size  of  a  fowl,  and  inhabits  one  of 


BOG  FIR  AND  OAK.  311 

the  most  spacious  calcareous  caverns  known.  It  only  leaves 
it  at  the  fall  of  day,  and  makes  its  nests  sixty  feet  from  the 
ground.  De  Humboldt  gives  a  most  entertaining  description 
of  these  birds,  and  of  the  periodical  attacks  of  Indians  upon 
them,  which  take  place  in  the1  month  of  June.* 

ESTHER. 

In  Iceland,  the  peasants  split  the  wood  of  the  pine,  which 
they  find  buried  in  their  bogs,  and  use  it  for  candles,  it  being 
generally  the  only  light  which  they  have. 


The  oak  is  also  found  in  great  quantities  in  the  bogs,  is  it 
not1? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes,  the  oak  is  generally  dyed  black  from  the  iron  which 
exists  in  the  peat.  Attempts  have  been  made  to  convert  the 
bog  oak  into  furniture,  it  being  so  hard  and  black  as  to  equal 
ebony  in  the  fine  polish  which  it  takes,  and  in  color;  but 
after  a  short  time,  it  warps  and  cracks  so  much  as  to  spoil  its 
appearance,  and,  unfortunately,  to  prevent  its  adoption  as  a 
substitute  for  ebony.  These  trees  are  found  immersed  in  the 
bogs  at  different  depths,  sometimes  twenty  feet  below  the 

surface. 

/• 

ESTHER. 

I  read  the  other  day,  that  experiments  have  been  lately 
made  upon  preparing  paper  from  turf  or  peat,  which  if  the 
attempts  should  prove  successful,  will  be  the  source  of  great 
advantage  to  Ireland. 

MRS.  F. 

Let  us  hear  what  you  have  read.  Various  are  the  materials 
which  have  been  tried  as  a  substitute  for  linen.  Paper  has 
been  made  from  straw;  Chinese  paper  from  the  outer  coats  of 

*  Humboldt,  Voyage,  torn.  iii. 


312  PAPER  FROM  PEAT. 

a  species  of  Amaryllis;  French  white  paper  from  old  rag  and 
oakum;  and  English  letter-paper  has  been  made  containing  a 
large  quantity  of  plaster  of  Paris:  chopped  hair,  spent  bark, 
wool  combings,  wood  shavings,  &c.  have  been  tried,  but  with- 
out success;  and  lately  the  fresh-water  Confervse  have  been  had 
in  requisition,  but  they  were  found  too  fragile  to  endure 
bleaching. 

ESTHER. 

Certain  kinds  of  turf  were  then  tried;  for  all  linen  paper 
being  composed  of  vegetable  fibre,  it  appeared  probable  that 
peat,  in  a  certain  state,  would  be  well  fitted  to  the  'purpose. 
The  bogs  consist  of  various  strata,  varying  in  density  and 
other  properties,  in  proportion  to  the  depth.  The  surface  is 
usually  covered  with  mosses,  heaths,  &c.  in  a  living  state; 
the  stratum  immediately  beneath,  usually  consists  of  a  tough, 
fibrous,  light  spongy  mass,  composed  of  the  same  kind  of 
plants  as  those  growing  above,  but  in  the  first  stage  of  de- 
composition; the  vegetable  fibre  being  unaltered,  while  the 
other  organic  substances  of  the  plants  are  chemically  changed. 
From  this  material  the  paper  is  made.  The  turf  is  macerated 
in  a  machine  resembling  a  paper-mill,  until  its  parts  are  fully 
separated  without  injuring  the  fibre;  and  a  stream  of  water 
running  through  the  machine,  carries  off  the  earthy  and  other 
extraneous  matter;  the  strong  woody  stems  of  heath,  &c.  are 
then  expelled,  and  the  mass  dried  in  an  hydraulic  press.  By 
next  exposing  it  to  the  agency  of  several  chemical  prepara- 
tions, the  fibres  are  brought  into  the  state  of  a  pure,  white, 
fine  pulp,  fitted  to  be  converted  into  paper,  either  alone  or  in 
combination  with  linen  rags.  The  pigment  called  "  Vandyke 
Brown"  is  also  procured  from  the  residue  of  this  manufac- 
ture, as  well  as  a  species  of  artificial  camphor.  About  eigh- 
teen pounds  of  the  pulp  may  be  procured  from  one  hundred 
weight  of  crude  turf;  and  pasteboard  is  made  from  it  by  a 
most  simple  process.  The  fibres  of  the  turf  lie  nearly  paral- 
lel; and  the  turf  is  therefore  cut  in  pieces  of  about  two  feet 
square  by  three  inches  thick:  when  dry,  it  is  placed  in  a  close 


C-ffiSALPINIA  PLUVIOSA.  313 

cast-iron  vessel,  the  air  exhausted,  and  a  mixture  of  dissol- 
ved glue  and  molasses,  at  a  boiling  heat,  poured  over  it, 
which  fills  up  all  the  pores.  The  turf  is-then  subjected  to 
the  pressure  of  an  hydraulic  press,  by  which  the  superfluous 
fluid  is  expressed,  and  its  substance  reduced  to  about  three 
eighths  of  an  inch  in  thickness.  It  is,  moreover,  worthy  of 
remark,  that  the  kind  of  turf  suited  to  the  above  purpose,  is 
precisely  that  which  is  rejected  for  fuel.* 

MRS.  F. 

Thank  you,  Esther.  Should  further  experiments  establish 
the  promise  held  out  by  this  account,  the  bogs,  which  are 
already  the  magazines  of  the  richest  manure,  and  of  an  inex- 
haustible store  of  fuel,  may  yet  become  in  Ireland  another  of 
the  most  fertile  resources  for  enriching  the  country.  But  it 
is  almost  time  for  our  walk. 

ESTHER. 

Before  we  leave  off,  mamma,  I  wish  to  ask  you  about  the 
tree  which  drops  water. 

MRS.  F. 

You  allude  to  the  Cassalpinia  pluviosa,  a  Brazilian  tree, 
which  is  said  to  produce  a  shower  of  drops  of  water  resem- 
bling rain,  which  are  discharged  from  the  points  of  the  leaves 
of  the  plant;  but  one  of  the  newest  vegetable  curiosities 
among  the  water-holding  plants  is  described  by  Dr.  Lindley 
as  a  native  of  the  woods  of  Demerara.  The  plant  is  called 
Coryanthes  maculata,  and  is  of  the  natural  order  of  Orchideae. 
It  is  not  uncommon  in  the  woods  of  Demerara,  where  it  is 
found  hanging  from  the  branches  of  trees,  and  suspending  in 
the  air  the  singular  lips  of  its  flowers,  like  fairy  buckets,  as 
if  for  the  use  of  the  birds  and  insects  that  inhabit  its 
foliage. 

*  The  above  account  is  from  the  report  of  a  paper  read  by  Mr. 
Mallet  at  the  meeting  of  the  British  Association,  as  given  in  the 
Dublin  Penny  Journal  for  November,  1835. 

27 


314  SHAGREEN. 

ESTHER. 

How  does  it  hold  the  water? 

MRS.  F. 

The  lip  of  the  flower  is  furnished  near  its  base  with  a  yel- 
low cup,  over  which  hang-  two  horns,  constantly  distilling 
water  into  it,  and  in  such  abundance  as  to  fill  it  several  times. 
This  cup  communicates,  by  a  narrow  channel,  formed  of  the 
inflated  margin  of  -the  lip,  with  the  upper  end  of  the  latter; 
and  this  also  is  a  capacious  vessel,  very  much  like  an  old 
helmet,  into  which  the  honey  which  the  cup  cannot  contain 
may  run  over. 

ESTHER. 

What  an  interesting  plant  it  must  be!  I  should  like  very 
much  to  see  it. 

MRS.  F. 

We  must  now  prepare  for  our  walk. 

HENRIETTA. 

I  see,  aunt,  that  there  has  been  a  shower  since  we  have 
been  talking.  Perhaps  it  will  be  over  by  the  time  we  have 
put  away  our  work. 

MRS.  F. 
Who  has  seen  my  spectacle  case? 

FREDERICK. 

Here  it  is,  aunt:  what  is  it  made  of? 

MRS.  F. 

Of  shagreen. 

FREDERICK. 

And  what  is  that?  it  looks  like  fish-skin. 


SHAGREEN.  315 

MRS.  F. 

No;  real  shagreen  is  the  skin  of  the  wild  ass,  prepared  in 
a  peculiar  manner. 

HENRIETTA. 

\Vill  you  have  the  kindness  to  tell  us  how  it  is  done,  and 
where  it  is  made1? 

MRS.  F. 

The  principal  manufactories  of  it  are  at  Astrachan,  and  in 
Persia.  All  skins  of  horses  or  asses  prepared  so  as  to  appear 
grained,  are  called  by  the  Persians  sogri,  by  the  Turks  sagri. 
The  skins  are  soaked  in  pure  water  for  several  days;  then 
stretched  upon  boards,  and  the  epidermis  or  outer  skin  scrap- 
ed off.  The  operation  is  then  repeated,  and  the  skin  again 
extended  upon  wood.  The  upper  side  is  besprinkled  with 
the  black,  smooth,  hard  seeds  of  the  Chenopodium  album. 

ESTHER. 

That  is  a  common  plant  in  waste  ground,  as  well  as  in  the 
garden.  The  people  about  here  call  it  "  fat  hen,"  and  give 
it  to  their  pigs  to  eat. 

MRS.  F. 

That  these  seeds  may  make  a  deep  impression  upon  the 
skins,  a  piece  of  felt  is  spread  over  them,  and  the  seeds  trod- 
den down  with  the  feet;  and  thus  a  strong  indenture  is  made 
in  the  soft  skin,  which  is  then  left  to  dry,  and  the  seeds  are 
shaken  off.  After  this  process  is  completed,  the  skin  is  once 
more  scraped,  and  again  put  into  water.  As  the  seeds  occa- 
sion indentation  in  the  surface  of  the  skin,  the  intermediate 
spaces,  by  the  operation  of  scraping  and  smoothing,  lose 
some  of  their  projecting  substance;  but  the  parts  which  have 
been  depressed  or  indented  by  the  seeds,  and  which,  conse- 
quently, have  lost  none  of  their  substance,  now  swell  up 
above  the  scraped  parts,  and  thus  form  the  grain  of  the 
shagreen.*  '. " 

*  London  Encyclopaedia,  art.  SHAGKEEIT. 


316  FRAGAANCE  OF  FLOWERS. 

ESTHER. 

Then  the  part  which  is  pressed  down  by  the  seeds,  being 
unscraped,  is  thicker  than  the  other,  and  therefore  rises 
above  it. 

MRS.  F. 

Exactly  so.     Henrietta,  open  the  window,  and  see  if  it  still 


ESTHER. 

No,  it  does  not,  mamma.     How  delightful  the  air  is  after 
the  shower!     How  sweet  the  flowers  smell! 


Yes;  a  heavy  shower  in  summer  brings  out  the  perfume  of 
all  flowers.  An  hour  ago,  when  the  sun  had  heated  and  dried 
the  air,  we  should  have  found  the  flowers  comparatively  scent- 
less; but  the  dampness  of  the  air  brings  out  their  perfume, 
and  seems  to  produce  a  total  change  in  the  odoriferous  organs 
of  plants.  I  can  smell  the  musk  mimulus  (Mimulus  moscha- 
tus]  most  powerfully,  although  it  is  in  the  further  bed  of  the 
garden. 

ESTHER.. 

And  the  same  difference  is,  I  am  sure,  most  perceptible 
between  a  morning  and  a  noonday  walk  in  autumn.  "When 
the  sun  has  dried  the  air,  and  the  plants  are  ill  able  to  bear 
his  action,  in  consequence  of  the  dryness  of  the  source  from 
which  they  draw  their  means  of  compensating  for  his  evapo- 
ration, the  garden  is  scentless;*"  but  walk  in  it  before  the 
dew  has  dispersed,  when  every  herb,  tree,  plant  and  flower  is 
"redolent  with  sweets,"  —  when  the  air  is  impregnated  with 
balsamic  odors,  and  all  nature  appears  to  be  offering  up 
incense  in  morning  sacrifice,  in  gratitude  for  the  refreshment 
and  rest  of  the  night  with  its  cooling  vapors;  —  go  into  a 
garden  then,  and  we  must  feel  the  truth  of  the  beautiful  words 
of  the  poet:  — 

*  Liudlej-. 


AFTER  RAIN.  317 

— —  Was  ev'ry  falt'ring  tongue  of  man, 
Almighty  Father!  silent  in  thy  praise, 
Thv  works  themselves  would  raise  a  gen'ral  voice, 
E'en  in  the  depth  of  solitary  woods, 
By  human  foot  untrod,  proclaim  thy  power, 
And  to  the  choir  celestial  Thee  resound, 
TV  eternal  cause,  support  and  end  of  all ! 

THOMSON. 


318 


CHAPTER  XX. 

SEPULCHRES  OF  THE  NATIONS  OP  ITALY. 

TOMBS  AT  PJESTUM. — BURNING  AND  BURYING  THE  DEAD. — HERCULES. 
— ROMAN  TOMBS. — STRUCTURE  OF  THE  SEPULCHRES  OF  CAMPANIA. 
CINERARY  URNS.  CONTENTS  OF  THE  SEPULCHRES. —LACHRY- 
MATORIES.—  TOILET  OF  THEROMAN  LADIES. —  ITALO-GREEK  VASES. 

MANNER    OF    PAINTING    THEM. — ETRUSCAN  VASES.  — ANCIENT 

ETRUR1A. CITIES    OF    THE    ETRUSCAN    LEAGUE. TOMBS  AT  TAR- 

QUINII.  —  CLUSIUM.  —  ETRUSCAN  SCARAE.KI  AND  MONEY. 


What  now  of  all  that  Rome  or  Athens  grac'd? 
In  war  or  conquest — wealth  or  splendor  plac'd, 
Their  gods  —  their  godlike  heroes —  princes,  powers, 
Imperial  triumphs,  and  time-braving  towers? 
What  now  of  all  that  social  life  refin M, 
Subdu'd  —  enslav'd  —  or  civiliz'd  mankind? 
What  now  remains? —  MOORE. 


ESTHER. 

HENRIETTA,  come  and  look  at  this  model  of  a  Greek  tomb, 
at  Paestum,  which  Mrs.  Clifford  has  lent  to  me  to  show  you. 

HENRIETTA. 

How  curious  it  is!  I  see  that  the  walls  are  painted,  and 
there  is  some  armor  and  a  quantity  of  vases  strewed  about 
it,  and  a  skeleton.  I  thought  that  the  ancients  burnt  their 
dead. 

ESTHER. 

Not  always;  the  Greeks  and  Romans  sometimes  adopted 
one  mode,  sometimes  the  other.  Interment  was  the  more 
ancient  practice;  and  the  bodies  of  infants,  and  of  those  who 


ROMAN  TOMBS.  319 

were    killed   by  lightning1,    were  forbidden   by  law   to  be 
burned.  ,    - 

MRS.  F. 

Hercules  is  said  to  have  been  the  first  who  introduced  the 
custom  of  burning  the  dead.  Having  promised  to  take  back 
Argaeus,  who  was  killed  in  the  Trojan  war,  to  his  father 
Licymnius  (the  uncle  of  Hercules),  and  being  unable  to 
restore  him  alive,  Hercules  burnt  his  body,  and  carried  back 
his  ashes,  in  order  not  to  fail  in  his  engagement  to  the  father. 

HENRIETTA. 

Then  there  was  no  regular  rule  observed  with  regard  to  the 
interment  of  the  dead'? 


No;  it  would  appear,  that  both  means  being  equally  acces- 
sible, the  survivors  were  free  either  to  burn  or  bury  the  bodies 
of  their  departed  relatives  as  they  preferred. 

MRS.  F. 

To  judge  from  the  results  of  the  researches  in  Magna 
Graeeia,  it  seems  that  the  proportion  of  bodies  interred  to 
those  burned  was  among  the  Italo-Greeks,  as  one  to  ten; 
whereas  among  the  Romans,  it  was  totally  the  reverse. 

ESTHER. 

The  Greeks  used  to  conceal  their  tombs,  and  placed  them 
on  the  north  side  of  their  town;  the  Romans,  on  the  contrary, 
liked  to  exhibit  their  sepulchres. 


As  Madame  de  Stael  observes,  "  Loin  que  1'aspect  des 
tombeaux  decourageat  les  vivans,  on  croyait  inspirer  une 
emulation  nouvelle  en  plagant  ces  tombeaux  sur  les  routes 
publiques,  afin  que,  retragant  aux  jeunes  gens  le  souvenir  des 
hommes  illustres,  ilsinvitassentsilencieusementales  imiter." 
This  observation  is  made  when  visiting  the  Appian  way,  the 


320  SEPULCHRES  OF  CAMPANIA. 

street  of  sepulchres,  where  numberless  tombs  and  sarcophagi 
attest,  at  each  step,  the  monumental  grandeur  of  the  Romans. 
But  their  private  tombs  were  of  a  different  description;  they 
were  placed  under  ground,  and  consisted  of  tiers  of  small 
niches,  each  of  which  held  one  or  several  urns.  Here  the 
master  and  the  slave  were  buried  together,  and  all  that  lived 
in  one  family,  shared  the  same  cemetry. 

ESTHER. 

This  kind  of  family  vault  was  called  a  columbarium,  from 
its  resemblance  to  the  holes  in  which  pigeons  build  their 
nests. 


It  was  so;  but  let  us  now  proceed  to  the  tomb  of  which  you 
have  the  model,  and  which  is  one  of  the  sepulchres  of  the 
Greeks  of  Campania. 

ESTHER. 

Are  they  all  of  the  same  construction? 

MRS.  F. 

No;  the  tombs  in  Magna  Grsecia  vary  in  their  form  and 
structure.  Some  are  dug  in  the  tufa,  or  rock;  others  are  built 
of  stone  or  brick,  forming"  a  room  or  chamber.  Sometimes 
the  bodies  were  burned,  and  the  ashes  placed  in  a  cinerary 
urn,  and  buried  in  the  ground,  without  any  protection  except, 
perhaps-,  a  square  stone  over  it.  A  porphyry  urn  was  so  dis- 
covered at  Cuma,  and  to  this  mode  of  interment  we  are  in- 
debted for  one  of  the  finest  painted  vases  in  the  Museum  at 
Naples.  It  is  called,  from  the  subject  depicted  upon  it, 
"  The  last  night  of  Troy."  For  its  form,  design,  preserva- 
tion, and  the  fineness  of  its  varnish,  it  stands  in  the  first  class 
of  its  kind.  It  was  found  in  1797,  at  Nola,  so  celebrated  for 
its  vases,  and  was  enclosed  in  a  vase  of  coarse  earthenware, 
in  order  to  protect  it.  It  was  full  of  human  ashes,  and  buried 
merely  in  the  ground. 


CONTENTS  OF  THE  SEPULCHRES.  321 

ESTHER. 

Had  the  ancients  any  particular  form  for  their  cinerary 

^ai 


urnsl 


It  appears  not;  for  they  are  found  with  two  or  three  handles; 
and  even  simple  plates  have  been  discovered,  containing 
ashes  and  burnt  bones.* 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  from  this  model,  it  seems  that  the  tombs  are  full  of 
curiosities. 

MRS.  F. 

Their  contents  vary,  of  course,  according  to  the  condition 
of  the  individual  interred.  Those  of  the  rich  are  full  of  ob- 
jects of  interest,  and  present  a  curious  insight  into  the  domes- 
tic life  of  the  ancients.  Some  of  those  which  are  of  large 
dimensions,  have  the  sides  of  the  walls  of  the  interior 
covered  with  white  stucco,  upon  which  are  painted  figures 
in  colors  and  gilding;  and  some  are  ornamented  with  bas-re- 
liefs. In  the  centre  of  the  apartment  is  laid  the  body,  with 
an  incense  bottle  on  the  breast,  or,  as  they  are  termed,  la- 
chrymatories. 

HENRIETTA. 

Why  were  they  so  called! 

MRS.  F. 

Not  from  holding  the  tears  of  the  relatives,  as  is  falsely 
imagined;  but  they  were  so  denominated  by  the  ancients, 
because,  from  the  form  of  the  neck  of  the  bottle,  the  perfume 
fell  from  it  drop  by  drop,  as  tears  flow  from  the  eye.  Some- 
times there  are  several  of  these  incense  bottles  round  the 
body,  made  either  of  glass,  alabaster,  or  earthenware.  It 
appears  that  these  bottles  were  carried  by  the  relatives  to  the 
grave,  when  the  perfumes  which  they  contained  were  poured 
over  the  body,  and  the  bottles  deposited  in  the  tomb. 

*  De  Jorio. 


322  ITALO-GKEEK  VASES. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  else  does  the  sepulchre  contain"? 

MRS.  F. 

On  a  patera,  or  dish,  is  placed  the  sop  for  Cerberus;  and 
numbers  of  vases  are  arranged  about  the  tomb,  either  stand- 
ing on  the  floor,  or  attached  with  bronze  nails  to  the  walls.' 
Men  were  buried  with  their  arms,  armor,  dice,  styles  and 
tablets  for  writing,  &c.,  according  to  their  profession.  Mir- 
rors, rouge,  combs,  ivory  and  bone  pins  for  the  hair,  orna- 
ments, &c.,  are  found  in  the  tombs  of  the  women;  and 
children  were  interred  with  their  dolls,  marbles,  and  play- 
things. 

HENRIETTA. 

Of  what  were  the  mirrors  made? 

MRS..F. 

Of  bronze:  but  Pliny  mentions  mirrors  of  green  glass;  and 
Nero  had  an  emerald  mirror.  The  Roman  ladies  always 
carried  their  mirrors  about  with  them;  and  it  appears  that 
they  were  acquainted  with  all  the  false  additions  of  the 
modern  toilet,  and  wore  false  hair,  false\eeth,  false  eyebrows 
and  eyelashes,  white  paint  and  rouge;  and  sometimes  they 
dyed  their  hair. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  are  the  other  contents  of  the  sepulchre? 

MRS.  F. 

It  would  be  endless  to  enumerate  all  the  various  substances 
which  they  contain;  amber,  gold,  silver,  iron,  copper,  mother- 
o'-pearl,  glass  and  rock  crystal  are  of  the  number,  besides 
several  kinds  of  food,  such  as  eggs,  shell-fish,  Crustacea, 
wine,  and  the  bones  of  birds. 

HENRIETTA. 

But  were  these  beautiful  vases  only  painted  to  place  in  the 
tombs? 


MANNER  OF  PAINTING  THEM.  323 

MRS.  F. 

From  what  we  can  learn,  it  appears  that  they  were  fre- 
quently used  in  sacrifices  and  other  religious  ceremonies; 
they  were  given  as  prizes  to  the  victors  in  the  games,  and 
wer6  also  kept  for  ornament,  or  appropriated  to  domestic 
purposes.  The  piety  of  the  relatives  led  them,  perhaps  to 
decorate  the  tombs  of  their  departed  friends  with  the  vases 
which  they  most  valued  during  their  lives,  or  which  were 
most  associated  with  their  memory. 

ESTHER. 

In  what  state  are  these  sepulchres  generally  found? 

MRS.  F. 

Some  have  no  earth  whatever  in  them,  except  the  small 
quantity  which  the  ancients  sprinkled  over  the  body,  at  the 
time  of  interment.  Other  tombs  are  quite  filled  up  with 
mould,  either  from  the  roof  having  given  way,  or  from  the 
excavations  of  the  Romans,  who  sought  the  Italo-Greek 
tombs  with  great  avidity,  for  the  painted  vases  which  they 
contain,  and  which,  even  at  that  period,  were  valued  for  their 
beauty  and  antiquity.  In  the  time  of  Julius  Caesar,  some 
Greek  sepulchres  were  found  at  Capua  when  that  city  became 
a  Roman  colony;  and,  after  ransacking  them  of  their  contents, 
the  earth  was  thrown  into  the  tombs,  which  also  were  some- 
times used  by  the  Romans  as  places  of  sepulchre  for  them- 


ESTHER. 

How  were  the  ancient  vases  painted? 

MRS.  F. 

The  Italo-Greek  vases  are  all  of  fine  red  pottery  varnished; 
and  the  figures  upon  them  are  either  painted  in  black  upon 
the  natural  red  ground  of  the  vase;  or  the  vase  is  grounded 
in  black,  and  the  figures  left  red  (the  draperies  and  features 
being  traced  out  in  black).  The  first  description  of  vase  is 
the  most  esteemed;  and,  as  far  as  can  be  inferred  from  minute 


324  MANNER  OF  PAINTING  THEM. 

examination,  it  was  executed  in  this  manner:  After  the  vase 
had  been  baked  once,  the  figures  were  lightly  shaded  out 
with  a  brush,  dipped  in  a  thin  diluted  mixture  of  the  black 
varnish.  The  artists  appear,  like  Raphael  and  the  Italian 
painters,  to  have  sketched  the  simple  figure,  and  afterwards 
to  have  added  the  draperies.  The  figures  were  next  filled  up 
with  black,  the  contours  corrected,  and  finished  off  with  fine 
sharp  lines  of  the  dark  black  varnish;  and  the  drapery,  fea- 
tures, and  different  details  which  occur  inside  the  black  figure, 
were  picked  out,  either  by  means  of  a  sharp  point  which  re- 
moved the  black,  or  by  applying  white  or  red  colors  over  it. 
The  vase  was  then  again  sent  to  the  oven,  which  completed 
the  process. 

ESTHER. 

And  how  were  the  others  executed1? 

MRS.  F. 

Those  of  the  second  class,  which  had  the  figures  left  red, 
and  the  vase  grounded  in  black,  appear  to  have  been  executed 
by  different  persons;  the  inferior  parts  being  left  to  inferior 
artists  to  perform.  The  first  class,  on  the  contrary,  seem  to 
have  been  entirely  finished  by  the  master;  whereas  in  the 
second,  a  variety  of  hands  may  be  traced  in  the  drawing;  and 
the  reverse  of  the  vase  appears  generally  to  have  been  done 
by  a  less  expert  artist.  We  may  fairly  suppose,  that  in  this 
manufacture,  which  must  have  been  pursued  upon  an  exten- 
sive scale,  the  labor  of  the  vases  was  divided  among  several 
persons,  as  would  be  the  case  with  us.  But  to  return  to  the 
vase:  the  figures  were  shaded  out,  as  before,  with  a  light  tint 
of  the  black,  or  sometimes  with  a  hard  point,  probably  of 
metal.  That  the  latter  plan  was  sometimes  used,  is  evident, 
from  the  lines  which  we  see  indented  on  some  of  the  vases; 
but,  probably,  it  was  less  generally  adopted,  from  it  being 
necessary  to  trace,  in  this  manner,  while  the  clay  remained 
in  its  unburnt  state,  and  the  more  fit  to  receive  an  impres- 
sion; and,  consequently,  the  vase,  from  being  handled  when 
in  this  tender  state,  was  more  exposed  to  injury  and  accident. 


MANNER  OF  PAINTING  THEM.  325 

The  other  mode  was  therefore  preferred.  The  outline  being 
sketched,  it  was  probably  next  carried  to  a  superior  artist, 
who  corrected  the  proportions,  traced  the  features,  &c.,  and 
outlined  the  whole  with  a  very  thick  line  of  the  black  var- 
nish. 

HENRIETTA. 

Why  did  he  use  it  so  thick? 

MRS.  F. 

Probably  to  afford  an  easier  outline  to  those  who  had  the 
task  of  grounding  the  vase  in  black,  and  who,  from  careless- 
ness or  inexperience,  would  (as  is  often  to  be  seen  in  the 
vases)  run  the  color  upon  the  figure,  which  was  left  in  red, 
and  upon  which  it  was  indelible.  The  thicker,  therefore,  the 
outline,  the  less  chance  of  it  being  passed;  and  in  some  of  the 
vases,  it  feels  quite  raised  to  the  touch.  The  figures  and 
superior  part  of  the  drawing  being  finished,  the  vase  was 
next  passed  to  another  artist,  to  draw  the  reverse,  and  to 
paint  the  borders  and  the  minor  ornaments;  and  another 
probably  put  in  the  white,  or  other  tints  which  were  added 
to  the  vase. 

HENRIETTA. 

Were  there  any  other  colors  used? 

MRS.  F. 

Yes;  besides  the  black,  white,  blue,  light  yellow,  bright 
red,  and  a  very  dingy  red,  were  sometimes  employed.  The 
decorations  being  finished  upon  one  vase,  nothing  remained 
but  the  black  ground,  which  being  added,  the  vase  was  sent 
to  the  oven  for  its  second  baking,  when  it  was  completed. 
There  is  a  vase  in  the  Museum  of  Naples  which  was  found 
unfinished,  and  from  that,  and  a  careful  examination  of  the 
others  in  the  museum,  the  above  conclusions  are  formed.* 

ESTHER. 

The  modern  imitations  are  easily  detected  by  immersing 

*  See  the  works  of  the  Canonico  de  Jorio. 
28 


326  ETRUSCAN  VASES. 

the  vase  in  spirits  of  wine,  or  sometimes  merely  by  washing 
it  with  water,  when  the  colors  speedily  disappear;  whereas 
the  ancient,  being  burnt  in,  are  unhurt  by  this  test. 


Their  weight,  and  the  color  of  the  clay,  are  likewise  means 
by  which  they  may  be  readily  distinguished,  as  also  by  the 
fineness  of  the  varnish.  When  the  vases  are  taken  from  the 
ground,  they  are  generally  covered  with  a  thick  white  calca- 
reous crust.  This  is  removed  by  means  of  muriatic  acid, 
which  does  not  in  the  least  affect  the  black  varnish,  so  dura- 
ble is  the  composition  of  which  it  is  made.  When  we  con- 
sider the  rapidity  with  which  they  must  have  been  executed, 
from  the  quick  absorption  of  the  colors  by  the  clay,  and  the 
impossibility  of  removing  the  black  lines  on  the  red  ground, 
we  cannot  but  admire  the  more,  the  boldness  and  correctness 
of  the  drawing,  and  the  elegance  and  grace  of  the  composi- 
tion. So  widely  were  these  vases  diffused,  that  a  Roman 
station  being  discovered  near  the  Hague,  many  cups  and 
vases  of  fine  red  pottery  were  to  be  seen  among  the  ruins  (in 
1823),  with  the  names  of  the  Greek  artists  who  had  manu- 
factured them,  distinctly  stamped  on  the  under  side.* 

HENRIETTA. 

But,  aunt,  you  call  these  vases  Italo-Greek;  I  thought  that 
they  had  been  Etruscan1? 

MRS.  F. 

That  the  Etruscans  fabricated  vases,  as  well  as  the  Greeks, 
is  acknowledged;  but  they  may  generally  be  distinguished 
from  each  other.  The  subject  painted  is  usually  the  type  of 
their  origin.  The  varnish  of  the  Etruscan  vase  is  less  bril- 
liant; the  earth  of  a  different  color;  the  ornaments  less  grace- 
ful; and  the  style  of  the  figure,  which  is  drawn  in  black  upon 
the  clay,  has  all  the  characters  assigned  to  the  Etruscan 
drawing.  The  want  of  proportions;  the  stiff  attitude;  the 
constrained  position  of  the  arms;  the  ill-drawn  eyes;  the  long 

*  Gell's  Topography  of  Rome. 


ANCIENT  ETRURIA.  327 

beards  and  hair  of  the  men;  the  winged  genii;  the  arms,  and 
other  attributes,  generally  enable  the  antiquary  easily  to 
distinguish  them,  and  are  sufficient  indications  of  their 
origin. 

HENRIETTA. 

Aunt,  but  I  do  not  know  anything  about  the  Etruscans. 

MRS.    F. 

Nor  is  much  known  respecting  them.  The  history  of 
Italy,  before  the  dominion  of  the  Romans,  is  involved  in  ob- 
scurity; and  whether  the  Etruscans  be  originally  of  Lydian 
or  of  Egyptian  origin,  is  quite  uncertain.  So  little  is  known 
of  this  eminently  distinguished  people,  that  circumstances 
seem  to  confirm  the  idea  that  the  Romans  destroyed  every 
thing  relating  to  the  records  of  ancient  Etruria.  Thus, 
although  the  Etruscans  seem  to  have  arrived  at  the  highest 
points  of  civilisation,  and  even  of  luxury,  at  an  early  period, 
whilst  Rome  had  as  yet  no  existence,  and  to  have  been  dis- 
tinguished, in  a  variety  of  respects,  far  beyond  the  people  of 
surrounding  nations,  we  are  almost  wholly  ignorant  of  their 
history,  and  even  their  origin  is  involved  in  the  greatest  ob- 
scurity. The  Emperor  Claudius  is  said  to  have  written 
twenty  books  of  Etruscan  history,  which  are  unfortunately 
lost. 

ESTHER. 

Were  the  Etruscan  dominions  extensive1? 


There  is  proof  that  almost  all  Italy  was,  at  one  time,  under 
the  power  of  Etruria;  and  Capua  was  built  by  an  Etruscan 
colony;  but  their  dominion  in  the  south  of  Italy  must  have 
been  of  short  duration,  as  no  traces  of  their  language  are  to  be 
found  there.  Their  territories  extended  at  one  time,  in  the 
north,  from  Turin  to  the  Adige,  and  they  were  only  separated 
at  one  part  of  their  confines  from  Rome,  by  the  Tiber.* 

*  See  Sir  W.  Cell's  Topography  of  Rome  for  the  above  details. 


328  ETRUSCAN  TOMBS. 

ESTHER. 

Which  were  the  twelve  cities  of  the  Etruscan  league1? 

MRS.  F. 

The  enumeration  of  these  cities  vary.  In  one  list  we  find 
the  cities  of 

Caere  —  Cervetere, 
Tarquinii  —  Turchina, 
Populonia, 

Volaterrae  —  Vol  terra, 
Arretium  —  Arrezzo, 
Perusia  —  Perugia, 
Clusium —  Chiusi, 
Rusellffi, 

Cortona  —  Cortona, 
Vetulonium, 
Cossa,  and 
Faesulae. 

Veii,Vulsinii  and  Capena,  which  belonged  to  an  earlier  cata- 
logue, had  probably  fallen  when  this  enumeration  was  made, 
and  their  places  were  therefore  supplied  by  the  admission  of 
other  towns.  At  Caere,  which  is  about  thirty  miles  from 
Rome,  many  curious  relics  have  been  found;  among  others, 
figures  of  black  earthenware,  about  four  inches  high,  of  an 
Etruscan  divinity,  represented  with  four  wings,  and  tearing 
open  its  robe.  The  etymology  of  the  word  caeremonia  may 
be  referred  to  the  circumstance  of  the  priests  of  Caere  having 
initiated  the  Romans  into  the  mysteries  of  Etruria. 

Tarquinii  is  about  thirteen  miles  north  of  Civita  Vecchia, 
and  was,  next  to  Veii  and  Clusium,  one  of  the  first  cities  of 
Etruria,  and  is  now  celebrated  for  the  tombs  which  have  been 
found  there;  but  we  will  not  mention  individually  each  city 
of  the  Etruscan  league,  most  of  which  afford  interesting  re- 
mains of  Etruscan  art.  The  Etruscans  entombed  their  great 
men  in  tumuli,  and  excavations  in  the  rock;  many  of  these 
are  to  be  seen;  and,  of  the  former,  the  tumuli  of  Tarquinii  are 
the  most  celeb  rated,  and  their  contents  are  eminently  useful 


ETRUSCAN  ANTIQUITIES.  329 

in  affording  information  relative  to  the  dress,  games,  and 
customs  of  this  lost  nation.  The  tombs  contained  vases, 
arms,  gold  ornaments,  &c.:  and  the  rock  in  which  they  are 
excavated  is  so  favorable  to  the  preservation  of  the  body, 
when  the  aiy  was  excluded,  that  a  person  who  looked  through 
the  first  hole  made  by  the  workmen,  saw  a  body  stretched  on 
a  bench  with  its  garments  in  perfect  preservation,  but  from 
the  admission  of  the  air,  while  he  was  yet  looking,  it  sunk 
down,  leaving  only  a  picture  of  dust,  of  all  that  had  once 
been  there. 

ESTHER. 

How  large  are  these  chambers'? 

MRS.  F. 

About  eighteen  feet  long  by  seventeen  feet  wide,  and  nine 
high.  The  ceiling  of  one,  opened  in  182S,  was  white,  orna- 
mented with  red  stars.  A  frieze  generally  runs  round  the 
chambers,  on  which  are  painted  the  games  which  had  been 
celebrated  at  the  funeral  of  the  deceased.  The  figures  in 
these  tombs  are  generally  well  executed,  though  not  with  the 
elegance  of  Grecian  art.  It  is  singular  that  the  men  are  all 
colored  red,  like  the  Egyptian  paintings  in  the  tombs  of  the 
Theban  kings.  Their  eyes  are  very  long,  their  hair  is  black 
and  bushy,  their  limbs  lank  and  slender,  and  the  facial  line 
projecting  remarkably,  so  that  the  outline  of  their  face  resem- 
bles strongly  that  of  the  Negro,  or  of  the  Ethiopian  figures 
of  Egyptian  paintings.  They  wear  round  their  ancles  rings 
as  ornaments,  and  armlets  on  their  arms.  Shawls  of  oriental 
patterns  are  also  worn  by  both  men  and  women. 

ESTHER. 

What  are  the  games  depicted  on  the  friezes'? 

MRS.  F. 

Wrestling,  leaping,  running,  boxing,  chariot-races,  horse- 
races, cudgel-playing,  and  riding  at  the  ring.     The  tombs  at 
Viterbo,  are  ornamented  in  the  same  manner,  and  are  cut  out 
of  the  rock;  this  place  and  Tarquinii  presenting  a  series  of 
28* 


330  ETRUSCAN  ANTIQUITIES. 

tombs  which  can  only  be  compared,  in  number  and  extent, 
with  those  in  the  valley  of  the  kings,  in  Egypt.  When  I 
was  in  the  Val  di  Chiana,  in  the  vicinity  of  Chiusi,  (the 
ancient  Clusium,)  we  visited  an  Etruscan  tomb,*  which  had 
been  discovered  when  sinking  a  well,  the  workmen  having 
come  to  the  stones  of  the  roof,  by  which  they  entered  into 
the  sepulchre,  which  is  built  of  uncemented  blocks  of  traver- 
tine; the  doors  consist  of  two  large  stones,  with  circular  pro- 
jections at  the  top  and  bottom,  which  fit  into  corresponding 
holes  in  the  framework  of  the  door,  and  thus  form  the  hinges. 
The  sepulchre  originally  contained  eight  sarcophagi,  all  of 
men.  The  subjects  of  the  bas  reliefs  upon  them  are  hippo- 
campi, medusas,  a  bacchante  on  a  leopard,  &e.  The  stone  of 
which  the  sarcophagi  are  made  is  very  sonorous. 

ESTHER. 
Did  you  visit  Clusium] 

MRS.  F. 

We  did  so;  and  although  there  are  no  remains  of  the  cele- 
brated mausoleum  of  Porcenna,  there  is  much  to  interest  in 
Etruscan  antiquities.Vases  of  every  description,  from  the  black 
pottery  to  the  highly  finished  painted  vases;  but  that  which 
interested  me  the  most  was  the  different  collections  of  Etrus- 
can scarabei,  which  are  found  in  the  fields  when  ploughed,  or 
after  heavy  rains.  They  are  mostly  on  cornelian,  and  are  per- 
forated in  their  longest  diameter.  From  some  having  been  found 
mounted  as  rings,  it  would  appear  that  they  were  destined  for 
this  use;  probably  as  signets.  The  Etruscans  were  celebrated 
for  their  engraving  upon  stones  both  of  cameos  and  intaglios, 
as  they  were  also  for  their  works  in  terra  cotta,  in  brass,  gold, 
&c.  At  Athens,  the  metal  cups  and  vases  of  Etruscan  work- 
manship were  highly  prized. 

HENRIETTA. 

What  was  their  money] 

*  Sepolcrete  della  Paccianese,  discovered  in  1820-21. 


ETRUSCAN  ANTIQUITIES.  331 

MRS.  F. 

No  Etruscan  coin  in  silver  is  known,  and  very  few  circular 
coins  are  found;  but  Plutarch  says  that  the  most  ancient 
money  was  in  rods  of  brass  or  iron,  cut  off  at  certain  lengths 
and  marked  »VI,  XII,  &c.  A  number  of  these  broken  and 
figured  bars  have  been  discovered;  from  their  different  lengths 
it  is  evident  that  the  balls  or  knobs,  whether  placed  on  the 
stem,  or  between  the  branches,  indicated  the  value  of  the  bar. 
Several  had  six  balls  or  fruits;  many  had  three:  some  of  the 
larger  pieces  have  also  double  knobs.  This  seems  a  most 
simple  and  natural,  and  not  an  inelegant  manner  of  producing 
the  effect  of  coinage,  and  the  mystery  is  at  once  explained  of 
the  early  Etruscan  money,  and  the  existence  of  so  many  pieces 
of  stamped  metal  as  have  been  found  from  time  to  time  in  the 
country.  The  more  we  enter  into  the  study  of  the  remains 
of  Etruria  the  more  interesting  it  becomes,  and  time  and 
further  investigation  may  probably  throw  more  light  upon  its 
history,  and  enable  the  learned  to  decide  upon  the  oft-disputed 
point  of  whether  it  is  to  Egypt  that  we  are  trace  the  first 
origin  of  Etruscan  arts  and  civilisation. 


332 


CONCLUSION. 


Such  is  the  bliss  of  souls  serene, 

When  they  have  sworn  and  steadfast  mean, 

Counting  the  cost,  in  all  to  espy 

Their  God,  in  all  themselves  deny. 

O  conld  we  learn  that  sacrifice, 
What  lights  would  all  around  us  rise ! 
How  would  our  hearts  with  wisdom  talk, 
Along  Life's  dullest,  dreariest  walk! 

We  need  not  bid  for  cloister'd  cell, 
Our  neighbor  and  our  work,  farewell, 
Nor  strive  to  wind  ourselves  too  high, 
For  sinful  man  beneath  the  sky. 

The  trivial  round,  the  common  task, 
Would  furnish  all  we  ought  to  ask; 
Koom  to  deny  ourselves;  a  road 
To  bring  us  daily  nearer  God. 

KEBLE'S  Christian  Year. 


THE  time  was  now  approaching  when  Henrietta  and 
Frederick  were  to  return  to  school.  The  little  circle  viewed 
the  separation  with  sorrow,  but  none  felt  it  so  acutely  as 
Henrietta,  who  loved  Mrs.  Fortescue  and  her  cousins,  as  if 
they  had  been  her  mother  and  her  sisters. 

The  evening  before  their  departure,  when,  she  wished  her 
aunt  "  good  night,"  Henrietta's  overcharged  heart  could  con- 
tain itself  no  longer,  and  she  burst  into  tears. 

Mrs.  Fortescue  kissed  her  affectionately. 

"  My  dear  Henrietta,"  she  said,  "  I  am  sure  that  we  all 
feel  the  parting  from  you  very  much,  but  we  will  look  for- 
ward, God  willing,  to  meeting  another  year,  should  your 


CONCLUSION.  333 

father  and  mother  still  leave  you  under  my  care.  The  oppor- 
tunities which  we  have  lately  enjoyed,  have  not,  I  trust,  been 
left  unimproved  by  any  of  us,  but  have  proved  to  us  all  the 
source  of  instruction  and  advantage.  My  great  aim  in  our 
conversations,  h'as  been  early  to  accustom  you,  to  place  all 
instruction  upon  a  religious  basis;  to  render  all  knowledge 
such  as  will  make  you  wise  unto  salvation,  and,  above  all 
things,  to  recognise  the  God  of  nature  in  all  his  works,  to 
see 

« Him  first,  Him  last,  Him  midst,  and  without  end.' 

"  If  God  be  robbed  of  his  glory,  how  can  we  expect  a 
blessing  upon  our  labors?  and,  as  we  are  all  called  upon  to 
walk  by  faith,  and  not  by  sight,  it  is  essential  to  lead  you  to 
see  God  in  all  things,  and  to  trace  him  who  is  himself  invisi- 
ble, in  those  outward  manifestations  of  his  power  and  good- 
ness, which  are  within  the  reach  of  our  finite  observation.* 

"  Such  has  been  the  object  of  all  my  instructions;  such,  I 
trust,  under  God's  blessing,  may  be  its  result. 

"  Then  may  I,  indeed,  look  forward  to  the  highest  reward 
which  an  anxious  parent  can  hope  for  (for  as  a  parent  I  feel 
towards  you  all),  that  of  being  permitted  to  witness  the  suc- 
cess of  my  hnmble  labors,  by  seeing  you  happy  in  this  world, 
and  being  allowed,  through  the  merits  of  our  Saviour,  to  say, 
when  we  all  meet  in  the  presence  of  our  Maker  —  *  Of  them 
whom  thou  gavest  me  have  £  lost  none.  Behold  I  and  the 
children  whom  the  Lord  hath  given  me.'  51 

*  Mayo. 


THE  END. 


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